Giovanni Antonio Giay (sometimes spelled Giaj; 11 June 1690 – 10 September 1764) was an Italian composer. His compositional output includes 15

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 ...

s, 5 symphonies, and a significant amount of

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 ...

.Giovanni Antonio Giaj at www.haendel.it
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Life and career

Born in

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The ...

, Giay's father, Stefano Giuseppe Giay, was a chemist. His father died when he was 5 years old. In 1710 he entered the Collegio degli Innocenti at the

Turin Cathedral la, Ecclesia Sancti Johannis Baptista , native_name = Duomo di Torino , native_name_lang = Italian , image = DuomoTorino.jpg , caption = The Cathedral in 2019 , imagelink = , pushpin map = Italy Turin , pushpin mapsize = , map caption = ...

where he studied music with Francesco Fasoli. His first

, ''Il trionfo d'Amore ossia La Fillide'', premiered at the

Teatro Carignano The Teatro Carignano (Carignano Theatre) is a theatre in Turin and one of the oldest and most important theatres in Italy. Designed by Benedetto Alfieri, it is located opposite the Palazzo Carignano. Building commenced in 1752 and the theatre was ...

during Carnival of 1715. In 1732 he succeeded Andrea Stefano Fiorè as 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 royal chapel in Turin at the behest of

Charles Emmanuel III of Savoy Charles Emmanuel III (27 April 1701 – 20 February 1773) was Duke of Savoy and King of Sardinia from 1730 until his death. Biography He was born in Turin to Victor Amadeus II of Savoy and his first wife the French Anne Marie d'Orléans. H ...

. He remained in that post until his death 26 years later, after which his son, Francesco Saverio, took over the post from 1764 until 1798. As master of the Cappella Regia, Giay wrote many religious and secular musical and

tic works. His work include ''Don Chisciotte in Venezia'', an

intermezzo In music, an intermezzo (, , plural form: intermezzi), in the most general sense, is a composition which fits between other musical or dramatic entities, such as acts of a play or movements of a larger musical work. In music history, the term ha ...

written in 1748 to 1752, with lyrics by Giuseppe Baretti. The lyrics feature

Miguel de Cervantes Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra (; 29 September 1547 (assumed) – 22 April 1616 NS) was an Early Modern Spanish writer widely regarded as the greatest writer in the Spanish language and one of the world's pre-eminent novelists. He is best kno ...

' characters

Don Quixote is a Spanish epic novel by Miguel de Cervantes. Originally published in two parts, in 1605 and 1615, its full title is ''The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha'' or, in Spanish, (changing in Part 2 to ). A founding work of West ...

and

Dulcinea Dulcinea del Toboso is a fictional character who is unseen in Miguel de Cervantes' novel ''Don Quijote''. Don Quijote believes he must have a lady, under the mistaken view that chivalry requires it. As he does not have one, he invents her, mak ...

, during the carnival of Venice.

References

External links

* 1690 births 1764 deaths Italian Baroque composers Italian Classical-period composers Italian male classical composers Italian opera composers Male opera composers 18th-century Italian composers 18th-century Italian male musicians {{Italy-composer-stub