Francesco Manelli (Mannelli) ( 1595 – 1667) was a Roman Baroque composer, particularly of

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 libr ...

, and a

theorbo The theorbo is a plucked string instrument of the lute family, with an extended neck and a second pegbox. Like a lute, a theorbo has a curved-back sound box (a hollow box) with a wooden top, typically with a sound hole, and a neck extending ...

player. He is most well known for his collaboration with fellow Roman composer Benedetto Ferrari in bringing commercial opera to

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 bridges. The isla ...

. The first two works, in 1637 and 1638, to be put on commercially in the

Teatro San Cassiano The Teatro San Cassiano (or Teatro di San Cassiano and other variants) in Venice was the world’s first public opera theatre, inaugurated as such in 1637. The first mention of its construction dates back to 1581. The name with which it is best know ...

were both by Manelli - his ''L'Andromeda'' and ''La Maga Fulminata''. Francesco Manelli was for many years confused with the

Franciscan , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...

friar Giovanni Battista Fasolo, because of the resemblances between Manelli's cantata ''Luciata'', (published in ''Musiche varie,'' op. 4 Venice, 1636), and Fasolo's dialogue ''Il carro di Madama Lucia'' (Rome, 1628), and the shared text of the first piece in both collections. In a comparison of the two cantatas Fasolo's version is "languid and melancholy", while Manelli's version is "spirited and biting". A mid-14th-century Florentine scholar of the same name, also called ''dei Pontigiano'', was a close friend of Giovanni Boccaccio.Dizionario biografico universale
Volume 3, by Felice Scifoni, David Passigli, publisher, Florence (1844); page 890.

Works

Operas, music for all of which is lost. *''L'Andromeda'' (libretto: Benedetto Ferrari) (1637) *''La maga fulminata'' (Ferrari) (1638) *''Delia ossia La sera sposa del sole'' (

Giulio Strozzi Giulio Strozzi (1583 - 31 March 1652) was a Venetian poet and libretto writer. His libretti were put to music by composers like Claudio Monteverdi, Francesco Cavalli, Francesco Manelli, and Francesco Sacrati. He sometimes used the pseudonym Luigi ...

) (1639) *''Il pastor regio'' (Ferrari) 1640 *''L'Adone'' ( Paolo Vendramin) (1640) *''L'Alcate'' ( Marc' Antonio Tirabosco) (1642) *''Ercole nell'Erimanto'' ( Bernardo Morando) (1651) *''Le vicende del tempo'' (Morando) (1652) *''Il ratto d'Europa'' ( Paolo Emilio Fantuzzi / Elvezio Sandri) (1653) *''La Filo, overo Giunone repacificata con Ercole'' (

Francesco Berni Francesco Berni Francesco Berni (1497/98 – 26 May 1535) was an Italian poet. He is credited for beginning what is now known as " Bernesque poetry", a serio-comedic type of poetry with elements of satire. Biography Life Berni was born 1497 o ...

) (1660) *''La Licasta'' (Ferrari) (1664) Cantatas *''Musiche varie'' Op. 4 (1636)

Recordings

*duet - ''Ti lascio empia, inconstante''. ''Musiche varie,'' Op. 4 Suzie LeBlanc (Soprano),

Derek Lee Ragin Derek Lee Ragin (born June 17, 1958) is an American countertenor. _Biography.html" ;"title="Derek Lee Ragin > Biography">Derek Lee Ragin > Biographyallmusic Early life Derek Ragin was born in West Point, New York and grew up in Newark, New Jerse ...

(Countertenor), Love and Death in Venice, Teatro Lirico, dir. Stephen Stubbs Virgin Classics 1996

Works

Recordings

References

See also