Joachim Pettoletti came from an italian family of travelling actors, jugglers and musicians who settled in Denmark around 1816. His brother, the better known Pietro Pettoletti, was a prominent guitar virtuoso and a prolific composer, Joachim, though primarily a violinist, also played and wrote for the guitar. The brothers had a substantial carrier as a violin/guitar duo in Europe and travelled a good deal in Scandinavia. They later moved to Russia where they worked for the Italian Opera in St. Petersburg.