Giovanni Domenico Freschi (26 March 1634 – 2 July 1710) was an Italian

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

and

Roman Catholic priest The priesthood is the office of the ministers of religion, who have been commissioned ("ordained") with the Holy orders of the Catholic Church. Technically, bishops are a priestly order as well; however, in layman's terms ''priest'' refers only ...

. From the age of 22 until his death he worked as a church musician and composer in Vincenza. He was also active as an opera composer from 1671 to 1685.

Life and career

Born in

Bassano del Grappa Bassano del Grappa ( vec, Basan or ''Bassan'', ) is a city and ''comune'', in the Vicenza province, in the region of Veneto, in northern Italy. It bounds the communes of Cassola, Marostica, Solagna, Pove del Grappa, Romano d'Ezzelino, Campolongo ...

, Freschi was appointed the ''

maestro di cappella (, also , ) from German ''Kapelle'' (chapel) and ''Meister'' (master)'','' literally "master of the chapel choir" designates the leader of an ensemble of musicians. Originally used to refer to somebody in charge of music in a chapel, the term ha ...

'' at the Cathedral of Vicenza on 14 December 1656; just a few years after his ordination. He remained in that post until his death in Vincenza 53 and a half years later. His

sacred music Religious music (also sacred music) is a type of music that is performed or composed for religious use or through religious influence. It may overlap with ritual music, which is music, sacred or not, performed or composed for or as ritual. Relig ...

compositions were frequently performed at the cathedral and at other major churches in Vincenza during his lifetime. In addition to his work as a church musician and composer, Freschi also had an active career as an

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

composer. Of his 16 known operas, 11 of them premiered at theatres in Venice and 5 of them at the opera house in Villa Contarini, Piazzola sul Brenta. His first opera, ''Ifide greca'' (libretto by

Nicolò Minato Count Nicolò Minato (b. Bergamo, ca. 1627; d. Vienna, 28 February 1698) was an Italian poet, librettist and impresario. His career can be divided into two parts: the years he spent at Venice, from 1650 to 1669, and the years at Vienna, from 1669 un ...

), premiered in Venice in 1671. His second opera, ''Helena rapita da Paride'' was performed for the inauguration of the

Teatro Sant'Angelo The Teatro San Angelo (in Venetian dialect) or Teatro Sant' Angelo (in Italian) was once a theatre in Venice which ran from 1677 until 1803. It was the last of the major Venetian theatres to be built in the 1650s–60s opera craze following Teat ...

in Venice in 1677. His last opera to premiere, ''Gl'amori d'Alidaura'', was performed in Piazzola sul Brenta in 1685.

Operas

*''Ifide greca'' (

dramma per musica Dramma per musica (Italian, literally: ''drama for music'', plural: ''drammi per musica'') is a libretto. The term was used by dramatists in Italy and elsewhere between the mid-17th and mid-19th centuries. In modern times the same meaning of ''dra ...

, libretto by

, 1671, Venice) *''Helena rapita da Paride'' (dramma per musica, libretto by

Aurelio Aureli Aurelio Aureli (Venice, before 1652 – id. after 1708) was an Italian librettist. Life Little is known about Aureli's life. He began his operatic career in 1652 with ''L'Erginda''. Until 1687, he worked as a librettist mainly in Venice, excep ...

, 1677, Venice) *''Tullia superba'' (dramma per musica, libretto by Antonio Medolago, 1678, Venice) *''La Circe'' (dramma per musica, libretto by

Cristoforo Ivanovich Cristoforo Ivanovich (1628–1689) was the first historian of Venetian opera, who also wrote several librettos of his own. Biography Ivanovich was born in Budua (Budva), at the time part of Venetian Albania (now southeastern Montenegro). Accordin ...

, 1679, Venezia) *''Sardanapalo'' (dramma per musica, libretto by Carlo Maderni, 1679, Venice) *''Berenice vendicata'' (dramma per musica, libretto by

Giorgio Maria Rapparini Giorgio may refer to: * Castel Giorgio, ''comune'' in Umbria, Italy * Giorgio (name), an Italian given name and surname * Giorgio Moroder, or Giorgio, Italian record producer ** ''Giorgio'' (album), an album by Giorgio Moroder * "Giorgio" (song), ...

, 1680, Piazzola sul Brenta) *''Il cittadino amante della patria ovvero Il Tello'' (operetta, libretto by Giorgio Maria Rapparini, 1680, Piazzola sul Brenta) *''Pompeo Magno in Cilicia'' (dramma per musica, libretto by Aurelio Aureli, 1681, Venice) *''Olimpia vendicata'' (dramma per musica, libretto by Aurelio Aureli, 1681, Venice) *''Giulio Cesare trionfante'' (dramma per musica, libretto by

Luigi Orlandi is a fictional character featured in video games and related media released by Nintendo. Created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto, Luigi is portrayed as the younger fraternal twin brother and sidekick of Mario, Nintendo's masc ...

, 1682, Venice) *''Ermelinda'' (dramma per musica, libretto by Francesco Maria Piccioli, 1682, Piazzola sul Brenta) *''Silla'' (dramma per musica, libretto by Andrea Rossini, 1683, Venice) *''L'incoronazione di Dario'' (dramma per musica, libretto by

Adriano Morselli Adriano Morselli was a Venetian librettist active between 1679 and 1691. His libretti have been set to music by composers like Antonio Vivaldi, Alessandro Scarlatti, Giacomo Antonio Perti, Bernardo Sabadini, Carlo Francesco Pollarolo and Domenico G ...

, 1684, Venice) *''Teseo tra le rivali'' (dramma per musica, libretto by Aurelio Aureli, 1685, Venice) *''Gl'amori d'Alidaura'' (dramma per musica, libretto by Francesco Maria Piccioli, 1685, Piazzola sul Brenta) *''L'amante muto loquace'' (dramma per musica, libretto by

Nicolò Leonardi Nicolò () is an Italian male given name. Another variation is Niccolò, most common in Tuscany. It may refer to: * Nicolò Albertini, statesman * Nicolò Amati, luthier * Nicolò Barella, Italian footballer * Nicolò Barattieri, Italian engineer * ...

, Piazzola sul Brenta)

Sources

*T. Walker and B.L. Glixon: "Domenico Freschi", ''

The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians ''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 ...

'' 1634 births 1710 deaths Italian Baroque composers Italian male classical composers Italian opera composers Male opera composers People from Bassano del Grappa 18th-century Italian composers 18th-century Italian male musicians {{Italy-composer-stub