Giuseppe Persiani (11 September 1799 – 13 August 1869) was an Italian

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 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 ...

. Persiani was born in

Recanati Recanati () is a town and ''comune'' in the Province of Macerata, in the Marche region of Italy. Recanati was founded around 1150 AD from three pre-existing castles. In 1290 it proclaimed itself an independent republic and, in the 15th century, ...

. He wrote his first opera - one of 11 - in 1826 but, after his marriage to the soprano

Fanny Tacchinardi Persiani Fanny Tacchinardi Persiani () (4 October 1812 – 3 May 1867) was an Italian soprano particularly associated with bel canto composers, such as Rossini, Donizetti, Bellini, and early Verdi. Her 'golden' period in Paris and London was betwee ...

, who was to become a significant singer in her time, he devoted much of his efforts to supporting her career. He worked in a variety of opera genres including ''

opera buffa ''Opera buffa'' (; "comic opera", plural: ''opere buffe'') is a genre of opera. It was first used as an informal description of Italian comic operas variously classified by their authors as ''commedia in musica'', ''commedia per musica'', ''dramm ...

'' and wrote 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 mus ...

named ''Abigaille'' and featuring the same character as in the popular

Verdi Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for his operas. He was born near Busseto to a provincial family of moderate means, receiving a musical education with the h ...

opera, ''

Nabucco ''Nabucco'' (, short for Nabucodonosor ; en, " Nebuchadnezzar") is an Italian-language opera in four acts composed in 1841 by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Temistocle Solera. The libretto is based on the biblical books of 2 Kings, ...

''. He was noted for his ability to effectively combine music and drama as well as florid decoration. His best-known opera, ''

Inês de Castro Inês de Castro (; in Castilian: Inés; 1325 – 7 January 1355) was a Galician noblewoman and courtier, best known as lover and posthumously-recognized wife of King Peter I of Portugal. The dramatic circumstances of her relationship with Peter ...

'', from a libretto by

Salvadore Cammarano Salvadore Cammarano (also Salvatore) (born Naples, 19 March 1801 – died Naples 17 July 1852) was a prolific Italian librettist and playwright perhaps best known for writing the text of ''Lucia di Lammermoor'' (1835) for Gaetano Donizetti. For D ...

(who also wrote the libretto for Donizetti's ''

Lucia di Lammermoor ''Lucia di Lammermoor'' () is a (tragic opera) in three acts by Italian composer Gaetano Donizetti. Salvadore Cammarano wrote the Italian-language libretto loosely based upon Sir Walter Scott's 1819 historical novel ''The Bride of Lammermoor''. ...

'' the same year), was created in 1835 for the celebrated

mezzo-soprano A mezzo-soprano or mezzo (; ; meaning "half soprano") is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range lies between the soprano and the contralto voice types. The mezzo-soprano's vocal range usually extends from the A below middle C ...

Maria Malibran Maria Felicia Malibran (24 March 1808 – 23 September 1836) was a Spanish singer who commonly sang both contralto and soprano parts, and was one of the best-known opera singers of the 19th century. Malibran was known for her stormy personality ...

, who sang the role of the 14th-century Portuguese queen of the same name. The opera was first presented at La Scala in January 1837 but by that time, Malibran had died. After some revisions to tailor the role for his wife, the opera was presented in Paris in 1839. While it was given about 60 productions over a period of 16 years, after 1851 it was rarely, if ever, presented but was revived in the 20th Century in the Italian town of

Jesi Jesi, also spelled Iesi (), is a town and ''comune'' of the province of Ancona in Marche, Italy. It is an important industrial and artistic center in the floodplain on the left (north) bank of the Esino river before its mouth on the Adriatic ...

to celebrate the 200th anniversary of Persiani's birth. Persiani died in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, aged 69. His birthplace, the town of Recanati, has named an opera house after the composer, the Teatro Persiani.

Works

Among the works of Persiani:Paola Ciarlantini (2005). "Persiani, Giuseppe (Antonio Nicola Luigi)", MGG. *''Piglia il mondo come viene'', opera buffa in two acts (1826, Florence). Libretto by:

Angelo Anelli Angelo Anelli (10 November 1761 – 9 April 1820) was an Italian poet and librettist who also wrote under the pseudonyms Marco Landi and Niccolò Liprandi. He was born in Desenzano del Garda and studied literature and poetry at a seminary in Veron ...

*''L'inimico generoso'', opera semiseria in two acts (1826, Florence) *''Attila in Aquileia'' (Simeone Antonio Sografi), opera seria in two acts (1827, Parma). Libretto by: Simeone Antonio Sografi *''Danao re d'Argo'', opera seria in two acts (1827, Florence). Libretto by:

Felice Romani Giuseppe Felice Romani (31 January 178828 January 1865) was an Italian poet and scholar of literature and mythology who wrote many librettos for the opera composers Donizetti and Bellini. Romani was considered the finest Italian librettist betwe ...

*''Gastone di Foix (ders.) (1827, Venice) *''Il solitario'', opera seria in two acts (1829, Milan). Libretto by:

Calisto Bassi Calisto Bassi (beginning of the 19th century, in Cremona – c. 1860, in Abbiategrasso) was an Italian opera librettist. Bassi wrote many original librettos and was also active as translator into Italian of several librettos from other languages. ...

. *''Eufemio di Messina ovvero La distruzione di Catania'' (Romani), opera seria in two acts (1829, Lucca); also known as ''I saraceni in Catania'' (1832, Padua) and ''Il rinnegato'' (1837, Naples) *''Costantino in Arles'' , opera seria in 3 acts (1829, Venice). Libretto by: P. Pola *''

'', tragedia lirica in three acts (28 January 1835, Teatro San Carlo, Naples) Libretto by: Salvadore Cammarano *''Il fantasma'' (Romani), opera semiseria in three acts (1843, Paris) *''L'orfana savoiarda'', opera seria in three acts (1846, Madrid)

References

Notes

External links

Teatro Persiani in Recanati
* ttps://belcantoitaliano.blogspot.com/2017/02/la-riscoperta-del-belcanto-italiano-dei.html/ La riscoperta del belcanto italiano dei Persiani {{DEFAULTSORT:Persiani, Giuseppe 1799 births 1869 deaths Italian classical composers Italian male classical composers Italian opera composers Male opera composers People from Recanati 19th-century Italian musicians 19th-century Italian male musicians