Johann Anton Losy von Losinthal (1650-1721) also known as Comte de Logy was a Bohemian aristocrat, Baroque lute player and composer from Prague. His lute works combine the French style brisé with a more Italian cantabile style. He was probably the most significant lutenist-composer in Bohemia at the height of the lute's popularity there.
Comte Losy's family were a Swiss origin, his father Johann Anton Logy senior was perhaps born in Purz in the Swiss of Grisons. By 1627 he had moved to Bohemia and purchased a house on Prague.
Losy senior had a number of business interests and was appointed a Councillor of the Exchequer and Deputy of the Salt, Beer and Wine Council by the Bohemian Court Chamber.
Johann Anton Losy was born at Steken around 1650. He had a younger twin brother and also had four sisters. Losy's interest in music was fostered by his lute teacher and valet Achazius Kazimir Huelse who seems to have remained a lifelong friend.
Losy attended the Charles-Ferdinand University in Prague, gaining his baccalaureate in 1667 and graduating as a Doctor of Philosophy. He then seems to have travelled to a number of European countries including Italiy. His official position meant that, while living in Prague, he frequently had to travel to the Imperial court in Vienna. In the following year his twin brother died.
As an aristocrat, Comte Losy's musical activities would have been expected to remain on an amateur basis. Nevertheless he seems to have gained the admiration of a number of professional musicians for his lute-playing and compositions. In 1697 he took part in a musical contest with Leipzig cantor Johann Kuhnau. While working inPrague in 1715, Gottfried Heinrich Stölzel met Losy who "played the lute as well as one who makes a profession of it" and also played the violin.
In spite of Losy' outstanding reputation as a player and improviser on the lute only one of his works was published in his own lifetime. This was the "Courante Extra-ordinaire" which was part of the collection Cabinet der Lauten, published in 1695 by Philippe Franz Lasage de Richée.
Losy composed mostly dances suites, as was typical of his time, but sometimes attempted larger works such as those in the three-part overture style popularized by Jean-Baptiste Lully.
Inspired by French and Italian composers, Losy mastered French lute style and his extant works demonstrate his intelligence, bright spirit and love for the lute.
His extensive and highly creative works are scattered through various archives in the Czech Republic, France, Germany and Austria. One of his manuscripts, a collection of pieces written for the 5-string Baroque guitar is housed in the National Library of the Czech Republic in Prague. However, the identification and verification of Losy's works is anything but straightforward. Prague lute player EmilVogl created a list that has been extended by further discoveries and concordances by Tim Crawford. There are no critical complete editions of Losy's works in CNRS style, so it is possible that additional works will be discovered and cataloged.

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