Giuseppe de Majo (di Maio; 5 December 169718 November 1771) was an Italian composer and

organist An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ. An organist may play solo organ works, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumental soloists. In addition, an organist may accompany congregational h ...

. He was the father of the composer

Gian Francesco de Majo Gian Francesco de Majo (24 March 1732 – 17 November 1770) was an Italian composer. He is best known for his more than 20 operas. He also composed a considerable amount of sacred works, including oratorios, cantatas, and masses. Life and ...

.The Harvard biographical dictionary of music By Don Michael Randel
/ref> His compositional output consists of 10

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, an

oratorio An oratorio () is a large musical composition for orchestra, choir, and soloists. Like most operas, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an instrumental ensemble, various distinguishable characters, and arias. However, opera is ...

, a concerto for 2 violins, and a considerable 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 ...

Life and career

Born in

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

, Majo spent most of his life working in his native city. He began his studies at the age of 9 at the Conservatorio della Pietà dei Turchini where he was a pupil of Nicola Fago and Andrea Basso. His first

, ''Lo finto laccheo'', premiered in 1725 at the

Teatro dei Fiorentini Theatres for diverse musical and dramatic presentations began to open in Naples, Italy, in the mid-16th century as part of the general Spanish cultural and political expansion into the kingdom of Naples, which had just become a vicerealm of Spain. ...

. Majo was appointed ''organista soprannumerario'' at the Royal chapel of Naples in May 1736. There he flourished, largely due to the favoritism given to him by Queen Maria Amalia. In 1744 he succeeded

Leonardo Leo Leonardo Leo (5 August 1694 – 31 October 1744), more correctly Leonardo Ortensio Salvatore de Leo, was a Baroque composer. Biography Leo was born in San Vito degli Schiavoni (currently known as San Vito dei Normanni, province of Brindisi) in ...

as ''

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. He remained in that post through 1770. He died in Naples in 1771.

Recording

*1 concerto in ''Neapolitan Flute Concertos'',

Auser Musici Auser Musici is a period instrument ensemble centered in Pisa that specializes in early music repertory from the Tuscan region of Italy. History, Mission, and Activities The ensemble was founded in 1997 by the flautist Carlo Ipata and has perform ...

, Carlo Ipata, director, Hyperion CDA67784 (2010)

References

1697 births 1771 deaths Italian Baroque composers Italian male classical composers Italian opera composers Male opera composers Musicians from Naples 18th-century Italian composers 18th-century Italian male musicians Pupils of Giovanni Battista Martini {{Italy-composer-stub