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88-431: Giuseppe Saverio Raffaele Mercadante (baptised 17 September 1795 – 17 December 1870) was an Italian composer, particularly of operas. While Mercadante may not have retained the international celebrity of Gaetano Donizetti or Gioachino Rossini beyond his own lifetime, he composed as prolifically as either and his development of operatic structures, melodic styles and orchestration contributed significantly to

176-475: A Donizetti opera, describing the composer as: a young pupil of one of the most valued Maestros of the century, Mayer ( sic ), a large part of whose glory might be called ours, he having modeled his style on that of the great luminaries of the musical art sprung up among us. [His opera in Rome] was accepted with the most flattering applause. News of this work impressed Domenico Barbaja , the prominent intendant of

264-856: A composer of successful serious opera, although other comedies were to appear quite quickly. With his commissions, the years from 1830 to 1835 saw a huge outpouring of work; L'elisir d'amore , a comedy produced in 1832, came soon after Anna Bolena ' s success and is deemed to be one of the masterpieces of 19th-century opera buffa . Then came a rapid series of operas from Naples including Francesca di Foix (May 1831); La romanziera e l'uomo nero (June 1831); and Fausta (January 1832). Two new operas were presented in Milan: Le convenienze ed inconvenienze teatrali (April 1831) and Ugo, conte di Parigi (March 1832). Rome presented Il furioso all'isola di San Domingo (January 1833) and Torquato Tasso (September 1833). Otto mesi in due ore (1833)

352-519: A composer, but there was also an interest across the continent of Europe in the history and culture of Scotland. The perceived romance of its violent wars and feuds, as well as its folklore and mythology, intrigued 19th century readers and audiences, and Scott made use of these stereotypes in his novel. At the same time, continental audiences of that time seemed to be fascinated by the Tudor period of 16th century English history, revolving as it does around

440-698: A few weeks of each other. The success of many of Pacini's lighter operas especially Il Barone di Dolsheim , La sposa fedele, and La schiava in Bagdad (all composed between 1818 and 1820) made Pacini one of the most prominent composers in Italy. His position was greatly enhanced by the rapid-fire successes of Alessandro nelle Indie (Naples, 1824, revised, Milan, 1826; given and recorded in London in November 2006), Amazilia (Naples 1824, revised, Vienna, 1827), and

528-711: A libretto written by Salvadore Cammarano ) given in Naples in 1835, and one of the most successful Neapolitan operas, Roberto Devereux in 1837. Up to that point, all of his operas had been set to Italian libretti. Donizetti found himself increasingly chafing against the censorship limitations in Italy (and especially in Naples). From about 1836, he became interested in working in Paris, where he saw greater freedom to choose subject matter, in addition to receiving larger fees and greater prestige. From 1838, beginning with an offer from

616-496: A major impression at the first performance (otherwise there would be no others), and to emulate the preferred musical style of the day, that of Rossini whose music "was the public's yardstick when they were assessing new scores". Remaining in Bergamo until October 1821, the composer busied himself with a variety of instrumental and choral pieces, but during that year, he had been in negotiation with Giovanni Paterni, intendant of

704-556: A month later, a one-act melodramma or opera, Elvida , a pièce d'occasion for the birthday of Queen Maria of the Two Sicilies , which contained some florid music for the tenor Giovanni Battista Rubini ; but it only received three performances. Writer John Stewart Allitt observes that, by 1827/28, three important elements in Donizetti's professional and personal life came together: Firstly, he met and began to work with

792-537: A new home in Naples. Within two months he had written another opera semiseria , Gianni di Calais , from a libretto by Gilardoni. It was their fourth collaboration, and became a success not only in Naples but also in Rome over the 1830/31 season. Writing about the Naples premiere, the correspondent of the Gazzetta privilegiata di Milano stated: "The situations that the libretto offers are truly ingenious and do honour to

880-492: A review in the Nuovo osservatore veneziano of 17 November in which the reviewer notes some of these performance issues which faced the composer, but he adds: "one cannot but recognize a regular handling and expressive quality in his style. For these the public wanted to salute Signor Donizetti on stage at the end of the opera." For Donizetti, the result was a further commission and, using another of Merelli's librettos, this became

968-452: A stature similar to that achieved by Bellini 's Norma . This dramma tragico appeared at a time when several factors were moving Donizetti's reputation as a composer of opera to greater heights: Gioachino Rossini had recently retired and Vincenzo Bellini had died shortly before the premiere of Lucia leaving Donizetti as "the sole reigning genius of Italian opera". Not only were conditions ripe for Donizetti to achieve greater fame as

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1056-455: A strong influence on him, especially the latter's La Juive . This influence took the form of greater stress on the dramatic side. When Mercadante returned to Italy after living in Spain and Portugal, Donizetti's music reigned supreme in Naples, an ascendancy which did not end until censorship problems with the latter's Poliuto caused a final break. But Mercadante's style began to shift with

1144-660: A time in Vienna , in Madrid , in Cádiz , and in Lisbon , but re-established himself in Italy in 1831. He was invited by Rossini to Paris in 1836, where he composed I Briganti for four of the best-known singers of the time, Giulia Grisi , Giovanni Battista Rubini , Antonio Tamburini and Luigi Lablache , all of whom worked closely with Bellini . While there, he had the opportunity to hear operas by Meyerbeer and Halévy , which imparted

1232-434: Is less than earlier estimates, which ranged from 80 to 90, since it has now been ascertained that many were just alternate titles for other works. It has been noted that he "bothered little about harmony and instrumentation", a fact supported by Rossini who once said: "God help us if he knew music. No one could resist him". Certainly, Pacini recognized Rossini's strengths and his dominance during this period: "Everyone followed

1320-458: Is not known whether he attended classes. Then, in 1811, Mayr once again intervened. Having written both libretto and music for a "pasticcio-farsa", Il piccolo compositore di musica , as the final concert of the academic year, Mayr cast five young students, among them his young pupil Donizetti as "the little composer". As Ashbrook states, this "was nothing less than Mayr's argument that Donizetti be allowed to continue his musical studies". The piece

1408-639: Is noteworthy because it deals with the youth of King Charles II , before he was crowned King of England. In contrast—by 1844—Verdi had written Nabucco , I Lombardi , and Ernani , thus outstripping Pacini. This period of accomplishments was followed by a long but slow decline, marked only by the moderate successes of La punizione (Venice, 1854), Il saltimbanco (Rome, 1858), and Niccolò de' Lapi (Florence, 1873). Pacini died in Pescia , Tuscany in 1867. During his lifetime, he produced much music of high caliber. His output of more than 70 stage works

1496-601: Is one of the few Pacini operas currently available on CD, and it has received many warm reviews. Pacini himself was the first to recognize his apparent defeat noted in memoirs: "I began to realize that I must withdraw from the field. Bellini, the divine Bellini, has surpassed me." Some years later, he resumed composing, and, after one more setback, enjoyed his greatest triumph with Saffo (Naples, 1840). After Saffo , Pacini entered into another period of prominence. Donizetti had departed for Paris, Bellini had died, and Mercadante's major successes were behind him, thus Verdi offered

1584-514: The Giornale . One of the later performances became the occasion for Donizetti to meet the then-21-year-old music student, Vincenzo Bellini , an event recounted by Francesco Florimo some sixty years later. The second new work, which appeared six weeks later on 29 June, was a one-act farsa , La lettera anonima . Ashbrook's comments—which reinforce those of the Giornali critic who reviewed

1672-660: The Teatro Argentina in Rome, and by 17 June had received a contract to compose another opera from a libretto being prepared by Merelli. It is unclear as to how this connection came about: whether it had been at Merelli's suggestion or whether, as William Ashbrook speculates, it had been Mayr who had initially been approached by Paterni to write the opera but who, due to advancing age, had recommended his prize pupil. This new opera seria became Donizetti's Zoraida di Granata , his ninth work. The libretto had been started by August and, between then and 1 October, when Donizetti

1760-778: The Teatro San Carlo and other royal houses in the city such as the smaller Teatro Nuovo and the Teatro del Fondo . By late March Donizetti had been offered a contract not only to compose new operas, but also to be responsible for preparing performances of new productions by other composers whose work had been given elsewhere. On 12 May the first new opera, La zingara , was given at the Nuovo "with hot enthusiasm", as scholar Herbert Weinstock states. It ran for 28 consecutive evenings, followed by 20 more in July, receiving high praise in

1848-446: The "revolution" begun in his previous opera: I have continued the revolution I began in Il giuramento : varied forms, cabalettas banished, crescendos out, vocal lines simplified, fewer repeats, more originality in the cadences, proper regard paid to the drama, orchestration rich but not so as to swamp the voices, no long solos in the ensembles (they only force the other parts to stand idle to

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1936-531: The 1820s. Many operas followed that are almost completely forgotten. However, one of these, Il corsaro (Rome, 1831) was revived 173 years later, in 2004, albeit only with piano accompaniment. This work is different in many ways from Verdi's later opera by the same name. The title role, Corrado, is a musico role for an alto, and the villainous Seid is a tenor. However, first Bellini and then Donizetti outstripped Pacini in fame. Many of his later operas, such as Carlo di Borgogna of 1835, were failures, but this

2024-535: The Italian operatic stage. But Pacini's operas were "rather superficial", a fact which, later, he candidly admitted in his Memoirs . For some years he held the post of "director of the Teatro San Carlo in Naples." Later, retiring to Viareggio to found a school of music, Pacini took time to assess the state of opera in Italy and, during a five-year period during which he stopped composing, laid out his ideas in his Memoirs. Like Saverio Mercadante , who also reassessed

2112-724: The Paris Opéra for two new works, he spent much of the following 10 years in that city, and set several operas to French texts as well as overseeing staging of his Italian works. The first opera was a French version of the then-unperformed Poliuto which, in April 1840, was revised to become Les martyrs . Two new operas were also given in Paris at that time. Throughout the 1840s Donizetti moved between Naples, Rome, Paris, and Vienna , continuing to compose and stage his own operas as well as those of other composers. From around 1843, severe illness began to limit his activities. By early 1846 he

2200-595: The Royal Theatres of Naples beginning in 1829, a job that the composer accepted and held until 1838. Like Rossini, who had occupied this position before him, Donizetti was free to compose for other opera houses. Finally, in May 1827 he announced his engagement to Virginia Vasselli, the then 18-year-old daughter of the Roman family who had befriended him there. The couple were married in July 1828 and immediately settled in

2288-620: The San Carlo again after the King of Naples banned the production of Poliuto on the grounds that such a sacred subject was inappropriate for the stage. In Paris, he offered Poliuto to the Opéra and it was set to a new and expanded four-act French-language libretto by Eugène Scribe with the title, Les Martyrs . Performed in April 1840, it was his first grand opera in the French tradition and

2376-557: The Teatro del Fondo, received only three performances. In October and for the remainder of the year, he was back in Rome, where he spent time adding five new pieces to Zoraida , which was performed at the Teatro Argentina on 7 January 1824. However, this version was less successful than the original. The second opera for Rome's Teatro Valle also had a libretto by Ferretti, one which has since been regarded as one of his best. It

2464-618: The age of 19, he wrote his first one-act opera, the comedy Il Pigmalione , which may never have been performed during his lifetime. An offer in 1822 from Domenico Barbaja , the impresario of the Teatro di San Carlo in Naples , which followed the composer's ninth opera, led to his move to Naples and his residency there until production of Caterina Cornaro in January 1844. In all, 51 of Donizetti's operas were presented in Naples. Before 1830, success came primarily with his comic operas ,

2552-573: The caretaker of the town pawnshop. Simone Mayr, a German composer of internationally successful operas, had become maestro di cappella at Bergamo's principal church in 1802. He founded the Lezioni Caritatevoli school in Bergamo (now the Conservatorio Gaetano Donizetti ) in 1805 for the purpose of providing musical training, including classes in literature, beyond what choirboys ordinarily received up until

2640-715: The composer a base from which to work and teach and not be continually exhausting himself with travel between cities. But in a letter to Vasselli, he adamantly refused. When Donizetti went to Bologna for the Stabat Mater , Rossini attended the third performance, and the two men—each former students of the Bologna Conservatory —met for the first time, with Rossini declaring that Donizetti was "the only maestro in Italy capable of conducting my Stabat as I would have it". Giovanni Pacini His first 25 or so operas were written when Gioachino Rossini dominated

2728-476: The conservatory Director, Niccolo Zingarelli , "My compliments, Maestro – your young pupil Mercadante begins where we finish". In 1817 he was made conductor of the college orchestra, composing a number of symphonies, and concertos for various instruments – including six for flute about 1818–1819, and whose autograph scores are in the Naples conservatory, where they were presumably first performed with him as soloist. The encouragement of Rossini led him to compose for

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2816-437: The detriment of the action), not much bass drum, and a lot less brass band. Elena da Feltre followed; one critic found much to praise in it: A work of harmonic daring, subtlety and originally orchestrated, it suddenly makes sense of oft quoted comparisons between Mercadante and Verdi. It has the overall coherence one looks for and finds in middle and late Verdi – a surprising anticipation, for Elena da Feltre dates from 1838,

2904-425: The fact that the score has totally disappeared. After these minor compositions under the commission of Paolo Zancla, Donizetti retreated to Bergamo once again to examine how he could make his career move along. From the point of view of Donizetti's evolving style, Ashbrook states that, in order to please the opera-going public in the first quarter of the 19th century, it was necessary to cater to their tastes, to make

2992-590: The first half of the nineteenth century and a probable influence on other composers such as Giuseppe Verdi . Donizetti was born in Bergamo in Lombardy. At an early age he was taken up by Simon Mayr who enrolled him with a full scholarship in a school which he had set up. There he received detailed musical training. Mayr was instrumental in obtaining a place for Donizetti at the Bologna Academy, where, at

3080-521: The foundations upon which Giuseppe Verdi built his dramatic technique. Mercadante was born illegitimate in Altamura , near Bari in Apulia ; his precise date of birth has not been recorded, but he was baptised on 17 September 1795. Mercadante studied flute, violin and composition at the conservatory in Naples , and organized concerts among his compatriots. The opera composer Gioachino Rossini said to

3168-409: The grand and romantic E minor concerto, which has since gained some popularity among concert flautists. Notes Sources Gaetano Donizetti Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti (29 November 1797 – 8 April 1848) was an Italian composer, best known for his almost 70 operas. Along with Gioachino Rossini and Vincenzo Bellini , he was a leading composer of the bel canto opera style during

3256-664: The latter part of the year when he wrote Il falegname di Livonia from a libretto by Gherardo Bevilacqua-Aldobrandini. The opera was given first at the Teatro San Samuele in Venice in December. Other work included expansion of Le nozze in villa , a project which he had started in mid-1819, but the opera was not presented until the carnival season of 1820/21 in Mantua . Little is known about it except its lack of success and

3344-407: The librettist Domenico Gilardoni , who wrote eleven librettos for him, beginning with Otto mesi in due ore in 1827 and continuing until 1833. Gilardoni shared with the composer a very good sense of what would work on stage. Next, the Naples impresario Barbaja engaged him to write twelve new operas during the following three years. In addition, he was to be appointed to the position of Director of

3432-554: The lives of King Henry VIII (and his six wives), Mary I of England ("Bloody Mary"), Queen Elizabeth I , as well as the doomed Mary, Queen of Scots . Many of these historical characters appear in Donizetti's dramas, operas which both preceded and followed Anna Bolena . They were Elisabetta al castello di Kenilworth , based on Scribe 's Leicester and Hugo 's Amy Robsart (given in Naples in July 1829 and revised in 1830). Then came Maria Stuarda ( Mary Stuart ), based on Schiller 's play and given at La Scala in December 1835. It

3520-526: The nature of Italian opera and took bel canto singing in a new direction. Orchestration became heavier, coloratura was reduced, especially for men's voices, and more importance was placed on lyrical pathos. While there were exceptions, romantic leads were assigned to tenors (in Rossini's time, they were frequently sung by alto or mezzo-soprano women). Villains became basses or later baritones (while they often were tenors for Rossini). Over time, far more emphasis

3608-413: The one-act, Una follia which was presented a month later. However, with no other work forthcoming, the composer once again returned to Bergamo, where a cast of singers made up from the Venice production the month before, presented Enrico di Borgogna in his home town on 26 December. He spent the early months of 1819 working on some sacred and instrumental music, but little else came of his efforts until

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3696-451: The only important competition. Pacini's successes during this time period include La fidanzata corsa (Naples, 1842), Maria, regina d'Inghilterra (Palermo, 1843), Medea (Palermo, 1843 with several later revisions, the last of which was in Naples in 1853), Lorenzino de' Medici (Venice, 1845), Bondelmonte (Florence, 1845), Stella di Napoli (Naples,1845) and La regina di Cipro (Turin, 1846). Allan Cameron (Venice, 1848)

3784-562: The opera Il pigmalione , as well as his composition of portions of Olympiade and L'ira d'Achille in 1817, as no more than "suggest[ing] the work of a student". Encouraged by Mayr to return to Bergamo in 1817, he began his "quartet years" as well as composing piano pieces and, most likely, being a performing member of quartets where he would have also heard music of other composers. In addition, he began seeking employment. After extending his time in Bologna for as long as he could, Donizetti

3872-423: The opera, where he won considerable success with his second such work ( Violenza e Constanza ), in 1820. His next three operas are more or less forgotten, but an abridged recording of Maria Stuarda, Regina di Scozia was issued by Opera Rara in 2006. His next opera Elisa e Claudio was a huge success, and had occasional revivals in the 20th century, most recently by Wexford Festival Opera in 1988. He worked for

3960-491: The others in musical progress" and he was able to persuade the authorities that the young boy's talents were worthy of keeping him in the school. He remained there for nine years, until 1815. However, as Donizetti scholar William Ashbrook notes, in 1809 he was threatened with having to leave because his voice was changing. In 1810 he applied for and was accepted by the local art school, the Academia Carrara, but it

4048-461: The piece after the "little composer" 's boasts, in the drama the "composer" responds with: I have a vast mind, swift talent, ready fantasy—and I'm a thunderbolt at composing. The performance also included a waltz which Donizetti played and for which he received credit in the libretto. In singing this piece, all five young men were given opportunities to show off their musical knowledge and talent. The following two years were somewhat precarious for

4136-544: The poet, Gilardoni. Maestro Donizetti has known how to take advantage of them...", thus reaffirming the growing dramatic skills displayed by the young composer. In 1830, Donizetti scored his most acclaimed and his first international success with Anna Bolena , given at the Teatro Carcano in Milan on 26 December 1830 with Giuditta Pasta in the title role. Also, the acclaimed tenor Giovanni Battista Rubini appeared in

4224-550: The poorly managed theatre, the continual indisposition of singers, or their failure to appear on time. These issues caused a delay until January 1827 for the premiere of Alahor , after which he went back in Naples in February, but with no specific commitments until midsummer. That summer was to see the successful presentations at the Teatro Nuovo of the adapted version of L'ajo nell'imbarazzo given as Don Gregorio and,

4312-541: The presentation of I Normanni a Parigi at the Teatro Regio in Turin in 1832: "It was with this score that Mercadante entered on the process of development in his musical dramaturgy which, in some aspects, actually presaged the arrival of Verdi, when he launched, from 1837 on, into master works of his artistic maturity: the so-called "reform operas". The beginnings of the so-called "reform movement", of which Mercadante

4400-406: The previously mentioned L'Ultimo giorno di Pompei (Naples, 1825). In Alessandro nelle Indie , the title role of Alessandro was created by a baritonal tenor, Andrea Nozzari , but it was sung by the much lighter-voiced Giovanni David at the Milan revival, indicating Pacini's desire to go in a new direction. Arabi nelle Gallie (Milan, 1827) reached many of the world's most important stages and

4488-419: The prima donna, or some other star singer, of her until-then inalienable right of having the stage to herself at the end. By doing this, Mercadante sounded what was to be the death knell of the age of bel canto. Early in following year, while composing Elena da Feltre (which premiered in January 1839), Mercadante wrote to Francesco Florimo , laying out his ideas about how opera should be structured, following

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4576-437: The requirement that the libretto to be revised by Ferretti, given Donizetti's low opinion of the work of the original Neapolitan librettist, Andrea Leone Tottola : he referred to it as "a great barking". In addition to the revision, he committed to write another new opera for the Rome's Teatro Valle which would also be set to a libretto written by Ferretti. Donizetti finally returned to Naples by late March. Immediately busy in

4664-440: The role had to be re-written for a musico , a mezzo-soprano singing a male role, a not uncommon feature of the era and of Rossini's operas. Opening night was a triumph for Donizetti; as reported in the weekly Notizie del giorno : A new and very happy hope is rising for the Italian musical theatre. The young Maestro Gaetano Donizetti...has launched himself strongly in his truly serious opera, Zoraida . Unanimous, sincere, universal

4752-428: The role of Percy. With this opera, Donizetti achieved instant fame throughout Europe. Performances were staged "up and down the Italian peninsula" between 1830 and 1834 and then throughout Europe's capitals well into the 1840s, with revivals being presented up to about 1881. London was the first European capital to see the work; it was given at the King's Theatre on 8 July 1831. In regard to which operatic form Donizetti

4840-561: The royal court. During this time and prior to leaving for Vienna, he was persuaded to conduct the premiere of Rossini's Stabat Mater in Bologna in March 1842. Friends—including his brother-in-law, Antonio Vasselli (known as Totò)—continually attempted to persuade him to take up an academic position in Bologna rather than the Vienna court engagement, if for no other reason that it would give

4928-492: The same period of time. Throughout his life he generated more instrumental works than most of his contemporary composers of operas due to his lifelong preoccupation with orchestration , and, from 1840, his position as the Director of the Naples conservatory for the last thirty years of his life. From 1863 he was almost totally blind and dictated all his compositions. In the decades after his death in Naples in 1870, his output

5016-457: The same school, the same fashions, and as a result they were all imitators of the great luminary .... If I was a follower of the great man from Pesaro, so was everyone else" After Rossini moved to Paris in 1824, Pacini and his contemporaries ( Giacomo Meyerbeer , Nicola Vaccai , Michele Carafa , Carlo Coccia , Vincenzo Bellini , Gaetano Donizetti , the brothers Federico and Luigi Ricci , and Saverio Mercadante ) collectively began to change

5104-408: The same time. Donizetti returned from Paris to oversee the staging of Lucia di Lammermoor on 26 September 1835. It was set to a libretto by Salvadore Cammarano , the first of eight for the composer. The opera was based on The Bride of Lammermoor , the novel by Sir Walter Scott , and it was to become his most famous opera, one of the high points of the bel canto tradition, the opera reaching

5192-658: The serious ones failing to attract significant audiences. His first notable success came with an opera seria , Zoraida di Granata , which was presented in 1822 in Rome . In 1830, when Anna Bolena was first performed, Donizetti made a major impact on the Italian and international opera scene shifting the balance of success away from primarily comedic operas, although even after that date, his best-known works included comedies such as L'elisir d'amore (1832) and Don Pasquale (1843). Significant historical dramas did succeed; they included Lucia di Lammermoor (the first to have

5280-532: The spring months of 1823 with a cantata, an opera seria for the San Carlo, and an opera buffa for the Nuovo, Donizetti also had to work on the revised Zoraide for Rome. Unfortunately however, the music set for the San Carlo premiere of Alfredo il grande on 2 July was described in the Giornali as "...one could not recognize the composer of La zingara ". It received only one performance, while his two-act farsa , Il fortunato inganno , given in September at

5368-485: The stage than his librettists". Back in Naples, he embarked upon his first venture into English Romanticism with the opera semiseria , Emilia di Liverpool , which was given only seven performances in July 1824 at the Nuovo. The critical reaction in the Giornali some months later focused on the weaknesses of the semiseria genre itself, although it did describe Donizetti's music for Emilia as "pretty". The composer's activities in Naples became limited because 1825

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5456-422: The strength and weaknesses of this period in opera, Pacini's style did change, but he quickly became eclipsed by the rising influence of Giuseppe Verdi on the Italian operatic scene, and many of his operas appeared to be old fashioned and rarely, if ever, appeared outside of Italy." Pacini's work is largely forgotten today, although some recordings do exist. During his lifetime, Pacini wrote some 74 operas. This

5544-614: The success of his Lucia at the Théâtre-Italien in Paris in December 1837, approaches came from the Paris Opéra . As musicologists Roger Parker and William Ashbrook have stated, "negotiations with Charles Duponchel, the director of the Opéra, took on a positive note for the first time" and "the road to Paris lay open for him", the first Italian to obtain a commission to write a real grand opera. In October 1838, Donizetti moved to Paris vowing never to have dealings with

5632-400: The time that their voices broke. In 1807, Andrea Donizetti attempted to enroll both his sons, but the elder, Giuseppe (then 18), was considered too old. Gaetano (then 9) was accepted. While not especially successful as a choirboy during the first three trial months of 1807 (there being some concern about a difetto di gola , a throat defect), Mayr was soon reporting that Gaetano "surpasses all

5720-427: The work on 1 July —recognize an important aspect of Donizetti's burgeoning musical style: [he shows that] "his concern with the dramatic essence of opera rather than the mechanical working out of musical formulas was, even at this early stage, was already present and active". On 3 August for what would become Chiara e Serafina , ossia I pirati , Donizetti entered into a contract with librettist Felice Romani , but he

5808-506: The year before Verdi's first opera These temporarily put him in the forefront of composers then active in Italy, although he was soon passed by Giovanni Pacini with Saffo and Giuseppe Verdi with several operas, especially Ernani . Some of Mercadante's later works, especially Orazi e Curiazi , were also quite successful. Many performances of his operas were given throughout the 19th century and it has been noted that some of them received far more than those of Verdi's early operas over

5896-526: The young Donizetti: the 16-year-old created quite a reputation for what he did do—which is regularly to fail to attend classes—and also for what he did instead, which was to make something of a spectacle of himself in the town. However, in spite of all this, Mayr not only persuaded Gaetano's parents to allow him to continue studies, but also secured funding from the Congregazione di Carità in Bergamo for two years of scholarships. In addition, he provided

5984-622: The young musician with letters of recommendation to both the publisher Giovanni Ricordi as well as to the Marchese Francesco Sampieri in Bologna (who would find him suitable lodging) and where, at the Liceo Musicale, he was given the opportunity to study musical structure under the renowned Padre Stanislao Mattei . In Bologna, he would justify the faith which Mayr had placed in him. Author John Stewart Allitt describes his 1816 "initial exercises in operatic style",

6072-783: Was a Holy Year in Rome and the death of Ferdinand I in Naples caused little or no opera to be produced in either city for a considerable time. However, he did obtain a year-long position for the 1825/26 season at the Teatro Carolino in Palermo, where he became musical director (as well teaching at the Palermo Conservatory ). There, he staged his 1824 version of L'ajo nell'imbarazzo as well as his new opera Alahor in Granata . But overall, his experience in Palermo does not appear to have been pleasant, mainly because of

6160-633: Was followed by the third in the "Three Donizetti Queens" series, Roberto Devereux , which features the relationship between Elizabeth and the Earl of Essex. It was given at the San Carlo in Naples in October 1837. As Donizetti's fame grew, so did his engagements. He was offered commissions by both La Fenice in Venice—a house he had not visited for about seventeen years and to which he returned to present Belisario on 4 February 1836. Just as importantly, after

6248-428: Was forced to return to Bergamo since no other prospects appeared. Various small opportunities came his way and, at the same time, he made the acquaintance of several of the singers appearing during the 1817/18 Carnival season. Among them was the soprano Giuseppina Ronzi de Begnis and her husband, the bass Giuseppe de Begnis . A coincidental meeting around April 1818 with an old school friend, Bartolomeo Merelli (who

6336-584: Was given in Livorno and Parisina (March 1833) was given in Florence. After the successful staging of Lucrezia Borgia in 1833, his reputation was further consolidated, and Donizetti followed the paths of both Rossini and Bellini by visiting Paris, where his Marin Faliero was given at the Théâtre-Italien in March 1835. However, it suffered by comparison to Bellini's I puritani which appeared at

6424-427: Was largely forgotten, but it has been occasionally revived and recorded since World War II, although it has yet to achieve anything like the present-day popularity of the most famous compositions by his slightly younger contemporaries: see Donizetti's compositions and Bellini's compositions . The French soloist Jean-Pierre Rampal notably recorded several Mercadante concertos for flute and string orchestra, including

6512-509: Was not staged until 1860. Donizetti returned once more to Milan where he stayed with the accommodating Giuseppina Appiano Stringeli with whom he had a pleasant time. Unwilling to leave Milan, but encouraged to return to Paris by Michele Accursi (with whom the composer was to be involved in Paris in 1843), he oversaw the December production of Maria Padilla at La Scala, and began writing Linda di Chamounix in preparation for March 1842 travels to Vienna , in which city he had been engaged by

6600-422: Was obliged to be confined to an institution for the mentally ill and, by late 1847, friends had him moved back to Bergamo, where he died in April 1848 in a state of mental derangement due to neurosyphilis . The youngest of three sons, Donizetti was born in 1797 in Bergamo's Borgo Canale quarter , located just outside the city walls. His family was very poor and had no tradition of music, his father Andrea being

6688-404: Was over-committed and unable to deliver anything until 3 October. The premiere had been scheduled for only about three weeks away and, due to the delays and illnesses among the cast members, it did not receive good reviews, although it did receive a respectable 12 performances. Returning north via Rome, Donizetti signed a contract for performances of Zoraida by the Teatro Argentina which included

6776-508: Was part, arose from the publication of a manifesto by Giuseppe Mazzini which he wrote in 1836, the Filosofia della musica . In the period after 1831 he composed some of his most important works. These included Il giuramento which was premiered at La Scala to 11 march 1837. One striking and innovative characteristic of this opera has been noted: ..it marks the first successful attempt in an Italian opera premiered in Italy of depriving

6864-419: Was performed on 13 September 1811 and included the composer character stating the following: Ah, by Bacchus, with this aria / I'll have universal applause. / They'll say to me, "Bravo, Maestro! / I, with a sufficiently modest air, / Will go around with my head bent... / I'll have eulogies in the newspaper / I know how to make myself immortal. In reply to the chiding which comes from the other four characters in

6952-442: Was placed on the drama. The role that Pacini played in instituting these changes is only now beginning to be recognized. There is little doubt that Pacini and his contemporary Nicola Vaccai exerted a stronger influence on Bellini than has been credited before. This change in attitude can be credited to the revival of two key works: Vaccai's Giulietta e Romeo and Pacini's L'ultimo giorno di Pompei , both composed in 1825 within

7040-401: Was presented on 14 November 1818, but with little success, the audience appearing to be more interested in the newly re-decorated opera house rather than the performances, which suffered from the last-minute withdrawal of the soprano Adelaide Catalani due to stage fright and the consequent omission of some her music. Musicologist and Donizetti scholar William Ashbrook provides a quotation from

7128-430: Was provided with a letter of introduction from Mayr to Jacopo Ferretti , the Roman poet and librettist who was later to feature in the young composer's career, much of the music had been composed. The twenty-four-year-old composer arrived in Rome on 21 October, but plans for staging the opera were plagued with a major problem: the tenor cast in the major role died a few days before the opening night on 28 January 1822 and

7216-597: Was quite successful. Before leaving that city in June 1840, he had time to oversee the translation of Lucia di Lammermoor into Lucie de Lammermoor as well as to write La fille du régiment , his first opera written specifically to a French libretto. This became another success. After leaving Paris in June 1840, Donizetti was to write ten new operas, although not all were performed in his lifetime. Before arriving in Milan by August 1840, he visited Switzerland and then his hometown of Bergamo, eventually reaching Milan where he

7304-423: Was the opera buffa L'ajo nell'imbarazzo ( The Tutor Embarrassed ), the premiere of which took place on 4 February 1824 and "was greeted with wild enthusiasm [and] it was with this opera that [...] Donizetti had his first really lasting success". Allitt notes that with a good libretto to hand, "Donizetti never failed its dramatic content" and he adds that "Donizetti had a far better sense of what would succeed on

7392-420: Was the applause he justly collected from the capacity audience.... Soon after 19 February, Donizetti left Rome for Naples, where he was to settle for a large part of his life. It appears that he had asked Mayr for a letter of introduction, but his fame had preceded him for, on 28th, the announcement of the summer season at the Teatro Nuovo in the Giornale del Regno delle Due Sicilie stated that it would include

7480-490: Was the first Pacini opera to be given in the United States. It was staged frequently in Italy, and it was not until 1830 that Bellini's first success, Il pirata (also Milan, 1827) passed Gli arabi nelle Gallie in number of performances at the Teatro alla Scala. While this is not generally recognized, it was Pacini, rather than Donizetti, Mercadante or Bellini, who gave Rossini the stiffest competition in Italy during

7568-581: Was to go on to a distinguished career), led to an offer to compose the music from a libretto which became Enrico di Borgogna . Without a commission from any opera house, Donizetti decided to write the music first and then try to find a company to accept it. He was able to do so when Paolo Zancla , the impresario of the Teatro San Luca (an early theatre built in 1629, which later became the Teatro Goldoni) in Venice accepted it. Thus Enrico

7656-479: Was to have the greater success, when the semi-seria work of 1828, Gianni di Calais , was given in Rome very soon after Anna Bolena had appeared, the Gazzetta privilegiata di Milano described the relationship between the two forms of opera and concluded that "in two classes—tragic and comic—very close together...the former wins incomparably over the latter". This appears to have solidified Donizetti's reputation as

7744-524: Was to prepare an Italian version of La fille du régiment . No sooner was that accomplished than he was back in Paris to adapt the never-performed 1839 libretto L'Ange de Nisida as the French-language La favorite , the premiere of which took place on 2 December 1840. Then he rushed back to Milan for Christmas, but returned almost immediately and by late February 1841 was preparing a new opera, Rita, ou Deux hommes et une femme . However, it

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