Annibale Pio Fabri ( Bologna, 1697 – 12 August 1760,

Lisbon Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Grande Lisboa, Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administr ...

), also known as ''Balino'', from ''Annibalino'', diminutive of his first name, was an Italian singer and composer of the 18th century. One of the leading tenors of his age in a time dominated by the

castrati A castrato (Italian, plural: ''castrati'') is a type of classical male singing voice equivalent to that of a soprano, mezzo-soprano, or contralto. The voice is produced by castration of the singer before puberty, or it occurs in one who, due to ...

, Fabri is now best known for his association with the composer

George Frideric Handel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel (; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque music, Baroque composer well known for his opera#Baroque era, operas, oratorios, anthems, concerto grosso, concerti grossi, ...

, in whose operas Fabri sang.

Early career

He was one of many famous pupils of the composer, singer and teacher Francesco Pistocchi. His dramatic career began in 1711 in Rome, and during the course of the decade he sang at Venice, Bologna, and Mantua, creating, among others, the title role in Vivaldi's '' L'incoronazione di Dario''. He joined the ''Accademia Filarmonica'' of Bologna as a composer of oratorio ''circa'' 1719 and was named its ''Principal'', or president, in 1725, 1729, 1745, 1747, and 1750. During the 1720s he reached the upper echelons of the Italian singers of the time, singing in works by Leonardo Vinci and

Domenico Sarro Domenico Natale Sarro, also Sarri (24 December 1679 – 25 January 1744) was an Italian composer. Born in Trani, Apulia, he studied at the Neapolitan conservatory of S. Onofrio. He composed extensively in the early 18th century. His opera ''Didon ...

(for whom he created the role of Araspe in ''

Didone abbandonata ''Didone abbandonata'' is an opera libretto in three acts by Pietro Metastasio. It was his first original work and was set to music by Domenico Sarro in 1724. The opera was accompanied by the intermezzo '' L'impresario delle Isole Canarie'', also ...

'') at Naples (1722–1724) and by

Alessandro Scarlatti Pietro Alessandro Gaspare Scarlatti (2 May 1660 – 22 October 1725) was an Italian Baroque composer, known especially for his operas and chamber cantatas. He is considered the most important representative of the Neapolitan school of opera. ...

(Bologna, 1724). In 1729 he joined Handel in London for two seasons, making his début in ''

Lotario ''Lotario'' ("Lothair", HWV 26) is an opera seria in three acts by George Frideric Handel. The Italian-language libretto was adapted from Antonio Salvi's ''Adelaide''.The opera was first given at the King's Theatre in London on 2 December 1729. ...

'' and creating roles in '' Partenope'' and '' Poro''. In his time in London, Fabri also performed in revivals of '' Giulio Cesare'', ''

Tolomeo ''Tolomeo, re d'Egitto'' ("Ptolemy, King of Egypt", HWV 25) is an opera seria in three acts by George Frideric Handel to an Italian text by Nicola Francesco Haym, adapted from Carlo Sigismondo Capece's ''Tolomeo et Alessandro''. It was Handel ...

'', ''

Rinaldo Rinaldo may refer to: *Renaud de Montauban (also spelled Renaut, Renault, Italian: Rinaldo di Montalbano, Dutch: Reinout van Montalbaen, German: Reinhold von Montalban), a legendary knight in the medieval Matter of France * Rinaldo (''Jerusalem Lib ...

'', '' Rodelinda'', Winton Dean: "Fabri, Annibale Pio", ''

Grove Music Online ''The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' is an encyclopedic dictionary of music and musicians. Along with the German-language ''Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart'', it is one of the largest reference works on the history and theo ...

'', ed L. Macy and '' Scipione'', in which Handel transposed for tenor the originally

castrato A castrato (Italian, plural: ''castrati'') is a type of classical male singing voice equivalent to that of a soprano, mezzo-soprano, or contralto. The voice is produced by castration of the singer before puberty, or it occurs in one who, due to ...

title role.cf
''Le magazine de l'opéra baroque''
and ; the part of Goffredo in ''Rinaldo'' was also transposed for him by Handel.

After London

Leaving London in 1731, Fabri appeared at Vienna in 1732, where he made the acquaintance of the

Emperor Charles VI , house = Habsburg , spouse = , issue = , issue-link = #Children , issue-pipe = , father = Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor , mother = Eleonore Magdalene of Neuburg , birth_date ...

, who in the next year became a godfather to one of Fabri's sons. He continued to perform across Europe, having considerable success in three operas by

Johann Adolph Hasse Johann Adolph Hasse (baptised 25 March 1699 – 16 December 1783) was an 18th-century German composer, singer and teacher of music. Immensely popular in his time, Hasse was best known for his prolific operatic output, though he also composed a co ...

at Madrid (1738–1739). Fabri seems to have retired from the stage around 1750, becoming a member of Lisbon's royal chapel until his death in 1760. His compositional output from this time included a setting of the popular Metastasio libretto ''

Alessandro nell'Indie ''Alessandro nelle Indie'' (''Alexander in India'') is an opera seria in two acts by Giovanni Pacini to a libretto by Andrea Leone Tottola and Giovanni Schmidt, based on '' Alessandro nell'Indie'' by Pietro Metastasio. It was premiered at the Te ...

''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fabri, Annibale Pio 1697 births 1760 deaths Musicians from Bologna Italian opera singers 18th-century Italian male actors Italian male stage actors 18th-century Italian people Italian tenors