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Fanny Eckerlin
Fanny Eckerlin (1802–1842) was an Italian mezzo-soprano who also sang contralto roles. During her career she was highly regarded, drawing favorable comparisons to Benedetta Rosmunda Pisaroni, but today she is remembered, if at all, for her association with the early career of Gaetano Donizetti, including creating the title role in his first publicly-performed opera, ''Enrico di Borgogna''. Eckerlin's father was a Napoleonic official of Polish origin; her mother, an Italian, was a sister of the actress , whose husband was the poet Vincenzo Monti. A native of Milan, she studied at the Milan Conservatory under David Banderali. She is said to have made her debut at the age of sixteen in 1818 in '' L'Italiana in Algeri'' of Gioacchino Rossini at the Teatro San Benedetto in Venice, but she is listed in the printed libretto as having sung Achille in ''Ifigenia in Aulide'' by Simone Mayr in Florence during the spring of 1817. It was later in 1818, on November 14, that she created ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Milan, Italy
Milan ( , , Lombard language, Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the List of cities in Italy, second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its Metropolitan City of Milan, metropolitan city has 3.26 million inhabitants. Its continuously built-up List of urban areas in the European Union, urban area (whose outer suburbs extend well beyond the boundaries of the administrative Metropolitan cities of Italy, metropolitan city and even stretch into the nearby country of Switzerland) is the fourth largest in the EU with 5.27 million inhabitants. According to national sources, the population within the wider Milan metropolitan area (also known as Greater Milan), is estimated between 8.2 million and 12.5 million making it by far the List of metropolitan areas of Italy, largest metropolitan area in Italy and List of metropolitan areas in Europe, one of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Adelina Catalani
Adelina, sometimes Adelaide or Adele, Catalani ( fl. 1818–1832) was a Franco-Italian soprano. She is remembered today largely for the circumstances surrounding her performance of the lead soprano role in Gaetano Donizetti's first staged opera, '' Enrico di Borgogna'', in 1818. Catalani was known variously as ''la cognate della famosa'' and ''la Catalani juniore'' to distinguish her from the far better-known Angelica Catalani,Liner notes t''A Hundred Years of Italian Opera 1810–1820'', Opera Rara of whom she has been described as a sister-in-law in various sources. François-Joseph Fétis claimed that she was French originally, and gave her birthplace as Toulouse. He goes on to state that she had a pretty voice which she developed without difficulty before being married and taken in hand by Catalani's brother, with whom she moved to Italy. At the time of her engagement to sing ''Enrico di Borgogna'', she was known only as a singer of ''accademie'', or chamber music recitals; con ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Claque
A claque is an organized body of professional applauders in French theatres and opera houses. Members of a claque are called claqueurs. History Hiring people to applaud dramatic performances was common in classical times. For example, when the Emperor Nero acted, he had his performance greeted by an encomium chanted by five thousand of his soldiers. This inspired the French poet Jean Daurat (1508-1588) to develop the modern claque. Buying a number of tickets for a performance of one of his plays, he gave them away in return for a promise of applause. In 1820 claques underwent serious systematization when an agency in Paris opened to manage and supply claqueurs. By 1830 the claque had become an institution. The manager of a theatre or opera house could send an order for any number of claqueurs. These usually operated under a ''chef de claque'' (leader of applause), who judged where the efforts of the ''claqueurs'' were needed and initiated the demonstration of approval. This c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Barcelona
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within city limits,Barcelona: Población por municipios y sexo – Instituto Nacional de Estadística. (National Statistics Institute) its urban area extends to numerous neighbouring municipalities within the and is home to around 4.8 million people, making it the [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Michele Carafa
Michele Enrico Francesco Vincenzo Aloisio Paolo Carafa di Colobrano (17 November 1787 – 26 July 1872) was an Italian opera composer. He was born in Naples and studied in Paris with Luigi Cherubini. He was Professor of counterpoint at the Paris Conservatoire from 1840 to 1858. One of his notable pupils was Achille Peri. Life and work Michele Enrico was born the second son of Giovanni Carafa, prince of Colubrano and duke of Alvito, and princess Teresa Lembo. He was given a solid musical education. In 1802, he composed his first opera, ''Il Fantasma'', which was staged at the theater of his father-in-law, prince of Caramanico, in 1805. He moved in 1806 to Paris, where he was taught composition by Luigi Cherubini and piano by Friedrich Kalkbrenner. However, pressured by his father to give up music for a military career, he became a lieutenant of the hussars in Napoleon's army. Taken prisoner in the Battle of Campo Tenese in 1806, he was freed and participated in the war again ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
I Due Figaro (Carafa)
''I due Figaro, o sia Il soggetto di una commedia'' is an 1820 opera (melodramma buffo) in two acts by Michele Carafa to a libretto by Felice Romani based on ''Les deux Figaro'' by Honoré-Antoine Richaud Martelly. The opera is a homage to Mozart, and tells of the further adventures of Cherubino, returned after 12 years in the army. Aimé Leborne (1797–1866) arranged his friend Carafa's work as ''Les deux Figaro'' at the Théâtre Odéon, Paris, 22 August 1827.Mark Everist ''Music Drama at the Paris Odéon, 1824–1828'' (2002) p. 105: "Leborne's relationship with Carafa may well have started in the early 1820s when they were both in Italy (although Leborne arrived just as Carafa was leaving), and the former wrote the finales to acts 1 and 2 of the latter's ''Violette'' (Opéra-Comique, 1828) a year after he had arranged ''I due Figaro''." Recording *''I Due Figaro''. Simon Bailey (Cherubino), Carmine Monaco (Figaro), Giorgio Trucco (Il Conte), Rosella Bevacqua (Contessa Rosina ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
La Gazza Ladra
''La gazza ladra'' (, ''The Thieving Magpie'') is a ''melodramma'' or opera semiseria in two acts by Gioachino Rossini, with a libretto by Giovanni Gherardini based on ''La pie voleuse'' by Théodore Baudouin d'Aubigny and Louis-Charles Caigniez. ''The Thieving Magpie'' is best known for the overture, which is musically notable for its use of snare drums. This memorable section in Rossini's overture evokes the image of the opera's main subject: a devilishly clever, thieving magpie. Rossini wrote quickly, and ''La gazza ladra'' was no exception. A 19th-century biography quotes him as saying that the conductor of the premiere performance locked him in a room at the top of La Scala the day before the premiere with orders to complete the opera's still unfinished overture. He was under the guard of four stagehands whose job it was to toss each completed page out the window to the copyist below. Performance history The first performance of ''The Thieving Magpie'' was on 31 May 18 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
La Scala
La Scala (, , ; abbreviation in Italian of the official name ) is a famous opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the ' (New Royal-Ducal Theatre alla Scala). The premiere performance was Antonio Salieri's ''Europa riconosciuta''. Most of Italy's greatest operatic artists, and many of the finest singers from around the world, have appeared at La Scala. The theatre is regarded as one of the leading opera and ballet theatres globally. It is home to the La Scala Theatre Chorus, La Scala Theatre Ballet, La Scala Theatre Orchestra, and the Filarmonica della Scala orchestra. The theatre also has an associate school, known as the La Scala Theatre Academy ( it, Accademia Teatro alla Scala, links=no), which offers professional training in music, dance, stagecraft, and stage management. Overview La Scala's season opens on 7 December, Saint Ambrose's Day, the feast day of Milan's patron saint. All performances must end befor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
William Ashbrook
William Ashbrook (January 28, 1922 – March 31, 2009) was an American musicologist, writer, journalist, and academic. He was perhaps best noted as a historian, researcher and popularizer of the works of Italian opera composer Gaetano Donizetti. Biography Ashbrook was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree in English literature from the University of Pennsylvania in 1946, and a Master's degree in musicology from Harvard University in 1947.Gossett, Philip, "In Memory of William Ashbrook", ''Opera Quarterly'', November 18, 2009 Ashbrook began an academic career by teaching humanities and then, for nearly twenty years, was a member of the English Department at Indiana State University at Terre Haute. He retired in 1974 as Distinguished Professor Emeritus. From 1974 to 1984 he was professor of opera at the Philadelphia College of the Performing Arts (now the University of the Arts). Ashbrook died in Denver, Colorado at the age of 87. Ashbrook as o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bartolomeo Merelli
Bartolomeo Merelli (19 May 1794 – 10 April 1879Warrack & West 1997, p. 463.) was an Italian impresario and librettist, best known as the manager of the La Scala Milan opera house between 1829 and 1850, and for his support for the young Giuseppe Verdi. Early life and theatrical agency Merelli was born in Bergamo and studied composition there with Simon Mayr. (Gaetano Donizetti was in the same class as Merelli.) He moved to Milan around 1812 and worked there as a theatrical agent, at the same time writing a number of librettos for Mayr, Donizetti, Nicola Vaccai and other composers.Rosselli 1992, pp. 340–341. He set up his own agency in 1826 and managed seasons in Varese, Como and Cremona between 1830 and 1835, and was joint lessee (with Carlo Balochino) of the Theater am Kärntnertor in Vienna from 1836 to 1848. La Scala From 1829 to 1850, Merelli managed La Scala, initially in partnership with others, who included Domenico Barbaia, and then by himself from 1835. During ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mantua
Mantua ( ; it, Mantova ; Lombard language, Lombard and la, Mantua) is a city and ''comune'' in Lombardy, Italy, and capital of the Province of Mantua, province of the same name. In 2016, Mantua was designated as the Italian Capital of Culture. In 2017, it was named as the European Capital of Gastronomy, included in the Eastern Lombardy District (together with the cities of Bergamo, Brescia, and Cremona). In 2008, Mantua's ''centro storico'' (old town) and Sabbioneta were declared by UNESCO to be a World Heritage Site. Mantua's historic power and influence under the Gonzaga family has made it one of the main artistic, culture, cultural, and especially musical hubs of Northern Italy and the country as a whole. Having one of the most splendid courts of Europe of the fifteenth, sixteenth, and early seventeenth centuries. Mantua is noted for its significant role in the history of opera; the city is also known for its architectural treasures and artifacts, elegant palaces, and the m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Le Nozze In Villa
''Le nozze in villa'' (''The Wedding in the Villa'') is an opera buffa in two acts by Gaetano Donizetti, dating to early in his career. Completed in 1819, it was premiered at the Teatro Vecchio in Mantua sometime during the carnival season of 1820-1821; the exact date is uncertain. The libretto by Bartolomeo Merelli is based on the play ' by August von Kotzebue. The opera was a failure at its premiere, and has disappeared from performance since; save for a performance in Genoa in the spring of 1822 as ''I provinciali, ossia Le nozze in villa'', no further mountings are known. Donizetti's autograph score has vanished, but an incomplete copy of the work, missing a quintet from Act II, exists in the library of the Conservatoire de Paris. Merelli, in his ''Cenni biografici'', blamed the failure of the work, despite "many successful numbers", on the "caprices and ill will of several of the singers, especially the prima donna". Fanny Eckerlin sang the lead role in the premiere.Os ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
