1811–69, Italian The Italian soprano Giulia Grisi made her debut at age 17 in Bologna, singing in Rossini’s Zelmira. Three years later, in Milan in 1831, Grisi created the role of the priestess Adalgisa in Bellini’s Norma – a part he wrote especially for her. Her Paris debut followed in 1832, when she sang the title ...
1749–1832, German Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, greatest of all German poets and dramatists, created what became almost a genre in its own right with his Faust (1808). The theme captured the imaginations of numerous composers and among the 122 operas based on Goethe’s writings, the Faustian legend formed the plot for 20 of them. Goethe did more ...
(Do-man’-e-ko Skär-lat’-te) 1685–1757 Italian composer and harpsichordist Domenico Scarlatti was the son of Alessandro Scarlatti. He was born in Naples and lived there until 1704, when he joined his father in Rome. The following year he travelled to the cities of Florence and Venice; during his time in the latter he met the great composer of the era, Handel. Scarlatti ...
(Jo-van’-e Per-loo-e’-je da Pa-les-tre’-na) 1525/6–94 Italian composer Palestrina is named after a small town near Rome, where he is thought to have been born. He was educated in Rome; in 1537 he was a choirboy at the basilica of S Maria Maggiore, one of the city’s principal churches and an important musical establishment. By 1544 he was back in Palestrina ...
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