Marietta Sacchi 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 libre ...
tic
soprano who had an active career during the 1820s and 1830s.
She mainly performed in
comprimario
A comprimario is a small supporting role in an opera (or a singer who sings those roles). The word is derived from the Italian "''con primario''", or "with the primary", meaning that the ''comprimario'' role (or singer) is not a principal role (o ...
and
soubrette
A soubrette is a type of operatic soprano voice ''fach'', often cast as a female stock character in opera and theatre. The term arrived in English from Provençal via French, and means "conceited" or "coy".
Theatre
In theatre, a soubrette is a ...
roles, and appeared at most of Italy's major
opera house
An opera house is a theater (structure), theatre building used for performances of opera. It usually includes a Stage (theatre), stage, an orchestra pit, audience seating, and backstage facilities for costumes and building sets.
While some venu ...
s and at
His Majesty's Theatre His Majesty's Theatre may refer to:
*Her Majesty's Theatre, Brisbane, Australia, known as His Majesty's Theatre 1901–1952, demolished 1983
* His Majesty's Theatre, London, England, known as Her Majesty's Theatre 1952–2023
*His Majesty's Theatre, ...
in
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
. She notably created roles in the world premieres of operas by
Vincenzo Bellini
Vincenzo Salvatore Carmelo Francesco Bellini (; 3 November 1801 – 23 September 1835) was a Sicilian opera composer, who was known for his long-flowing melodic lines for which he was named "the Swan of Catania".
Many years later, in 1898, Gi ...
,
Gaetano Donizetti
Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti (29 November 1797 – 8 April 1848) was an Italian composer, best known for his almost 70 operas. Along with Gioachino Rossini and Vincenzo Bellini, he was a leading composer of the ''bel canto'' opera style dur ...
,
Simon Mayr
Johann(es) Simon Mayr (also spelled Majer, Mayer, Maier), also known in Italian as Giovanni Simone Mayr or Simone Mayr (14 June 1763 – 2 December 1845), was a German composer. His music reflects the transition from the Classical to the ...
,
Giovanni Pacini
Giovanni Pacini (11 February 17966 December 1867) was an Italian composer, best known for his operas. Pacini was born in Catania, Sicily, the son of the buffo Luigi Pacini, who was to appear in the premieres of many of Giovanni's operas. The ...
,
Luigi Ricci, and
Giuseppe Verdi. She also excelled in parts from the operas of
Gioachino Rossini
Gioachino Antonio Rossini (29 February 1792 – 13 November 1868) was an Italian composer who gained fame for his 39 operas, although he also wrote many songs, some chamber music and piano pieces, and some sacred music. He set new standards f ...
.
Career
In 1823 Sacchi portrayed the role of Barsene in the world premiere of
Simon Mayr
Johann(es) Simon Mayr (also spelled Majer, Mayer, Maier), also known in Italian as Giovanni Simone Mayr or Simone Mayr (14 June 1763 – 2 December 1845), was a German composer. His music reflects the transition from the Classical to the ...
's ''Demetrio'' at the
Teatro Regio di Torino
The Teatro Regio (Royal Theatre) is a prominent opera house and opera company in Turin, Piedmont, Italy. Its season runs from October to June with the presentation of eight or nine operas given from five to twelve performances of each.
Several bu ...
. In 1826 she sang in the premiere of
Giovanni Pacini
Giovanni Pacini (11 February 17966 December 1867) was an Italian composer, best known for his operas. Pacini was born in Catania, Sicily, the son of the buffo Luigi Pacini, who was to appear in the premieres of many of Giovanni's operas. The ...
's ''La gelosia corretta'' at
La Scala and returned to that house the following year to perform the role of Adele in the world premiere of
Vincenzo Bellini
Vincenzo Salvatore Carmelo Francesco Bellini (; 3 November 1801 – 23 September 1835) was a Sicilian opera composer, who was known for his long-flowing melodic lines for which he was named "the Swan of Catania".
Many years later, in 1898, Gi ...
's ''
Il pirata
''Il pirata'' (''The Pirate'') is an opera in two acts by Vincenzo Bellini with an Italian libretto by Felice Romani which was based on a three-act '' mélodrame ''from 1826: ''Bertram, ou le Pirate'' (''Bertram, or The Pirate'') by Charles No ...
''. She was committed to the Teatro Regio di Torino in 1828-1829 where she performed Zarele in Pacini's ''Gli arabi nelle Gallie'' and Selene in
Saverio Mercadante
Giuseppe Saverio Raffaele Mercadante (baptised 17 September 179517 December 1870) was an Italian composer, particularly of operas. While Mercadante may not have retained the international celebrity of Gaetano Donizetti or Gioachino Rossini beyon ...
's ''
Didone abbandonata
''Didone abbandonata'' is an opera libretto in three acts by Pietro Metastasio. It was his first original work and was set to music by Domenico Sarro in 1724. The opera was accompanied by the intermezzo ''L'impresario delle Isole Canarie'', also b ...
''. In May and June 1829 she performed in several operas at the
Teatro Regio di Parma
Teatro Regio di Parma, originally constructed as the Nuovo Teatro Ducale (New Ducal Theatre),Martini, "Before the Teatro Regio", pp. 56 is an opera house and opera company in Parma, Italy.
Replacing an obsolete house, the new Ducale achieved ...
, including Azema in the house premiere of
Gioachino Rossini
Gioachino Antonio Rossini (29 February 1792 – 13 November 1868) was an Italian composer who gained fame for his 39 operas, although he also wrote many songs, some chamber music and piano pieces, and some sacred music. He set new standards f ...
's ''
Semiramide
''Semiramide'' () is an opera in two acts by Gioachino Rossini.
The libretto by Gaetano Rossi is based on Voltaire's tragedy ''Semiramis'', which in turn was based on the legend of Semiramis of Assyria. The opera was first performed at La Fenic ...
'', Berta in the house premiere of Rossini's ''
The Barber of Seville
''The Barber of Seville, or The Useless Precaution'' ( it, Il barbiere di Siviglia, ossia L'inutile precauzione ) is an '' opera buffa'' in two acts composed by Gioachino Rossini with an Italian libretto by Cesare Sterbini. The libretto was b ...
'', Fatima in the world premiere of Bellini's ''
Zaira'', and Sinaide in the house premiere of Rossini's ''
Moïse et Pharaon''. In August and September 1829 she performed at the
Teatro Riccardi in
Bergamo
Bergamo (; lmo, Bèrghem ; from the proto- Germanic elements *''berg +*heim'', the "mountain home") is a city in the alpine Lombardy region of northern Italy, approximately northeast of Milan, and about from Switzerland, the alpine lakes C ...
as Adra in
Pietro Generali's ''Jefte'' and Zarele. In October–November 1829 she was heard at the
Teatro Comunale di Bologna
The Teatro Comunale di Bologna is an opera house in Bologna, Italy. Typically, it presents eight operas with six performances during its November to April season.
While there had been various theatres presenting opera in Bologna since the early 1 ...
as Adele in
Nicola Vaccai
Nicola Vaccai (15 March 1790 – 5 or 6 August 1848) was an Italian composer, particularly of operas, and a singing teacher.
Life and career as a composer
Born at Tolentino, he grew up in Pesaro, and studied music there until his parents sent hi ...
's ''
Giulietta e Romeo'', Adra, Azema, and Emilia in Rossini's ''
Otello
''Otello'' () is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Arrigo Boito, based on Shakespeare's play '' Othello''. It was Verdi's penultimate opera, first performed at the Teatro alla Scala, Milan, on 5 February 1887. ...
''.
[
From December 1829 through February 1830, Sacchi performed in several operas at the ]Teatro Regio di Parma
Teatro Regio di Parma, originally constructed as the Nuovo Teatro Ducale (New Ducal Theatre),Martini, "Before the Teatro Regio", pp. 56 is an opera house and opera company in Parma, Italy.
Replacing an obsolete house, the new Ducale achieved ...
, including Vaccai
Nicola Vaccai (15 March 1790 – 5 or 6 August 1848) was an Italian composer, particularly of operas, and a singing teacher.
Life and career as a composer
Born at Tolentino, he grew up in Pesaro, and studied music there until his parents sent hi ...
's ''Adele'', Roggiero in Rossini's ''Tancredi
''Tancredi'' is a ''melodramma eroico'' (''opera seria'' or heroic opera) in two acts by composer Gioachino Rossini and librettist Gaetano Rossi (who was also to write ''Semiramide'' ten years later), based on Voltaire's play '' Tancrède'' (176 ...
'', and Zaida in Rossini's '' Il turco in Italia''. The following April she made her debut at His Majesty's Theatre His Majesty's Theatre may refer to:
*Her Majesty's Theatre, Brisbane, Australia, known as His Majesty's Theatre 1901–1952, demolished 1983
* His Majesty's Theatre, London, England, known as Her Majesty's Theatre 1952–2023
*His Majesty's Theatre, ...
in London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
as Bellini's ''Adele''. In 1831 she performed at La Scala as Clotilde in the world premiere of Bellini's ''Norma Norma may refer to:
* Norma (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name)
Astronomy
* Norma (constellation)
*555 Norma, a minor asteroid
* Cygnus Arm or Norma Arm, a spiral arm in the Milky Way galaxy
Geography
*Norma, Laz ...
''; a role she repeated the following year at La Fenice
Teatro La Fenice (, "The Phoenix") is an opera house in Venice, Italy. It is one of "the most famous and renowned landmarks in the history of Italian theatre" and in the history of opera as a whole. Especially in the 19th century, La Fenice bec ...
. In 1832 she was heard at the Teatro della Canobbiana
The Teatro Lirico (known until 1894 as the Teatro alla Canobbiana) is a theatre in Milan, Italy. In the 19th and early 20th centuries it hosted numerous opera performances, including the world premieres of Donizetti's ''L'elisir d'amore'' and Gi ...
as Giannetta in the premiere of Donizetti
Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti (29 November 1797 – 8 April 1848) was an Italian composer, best known for his almost 70 operas. Along with Gioachino Rossini and Vincenzo Bellini, he was a leading composer of the ''bel canto'' opera style duri ...
's ''L'elisir d'amore
''L'elisir d'amore'' (''The Elixir of Love'', ) is a ' ( opera buffa) in two acts by the Italian composer Gaetano Donizetti. Felice Romani wrote the Italian libretto, after Eugène Scribe's libretto for Daniel Auber's ' (1831). The opera pre ...
''. She sang several roles at La Fenice in 1833, including Isaura in ''Tancredi'' and Giannetta. In 1834 she performed at the opera house in Livorno as Rossini's Berta, Elisetta in Domenico Cimarosa
Domenico Cimarosa (; 17 December 1749 – 11 January 1801) was an Italian composer of the Neapolitan school and of the Classical period. He wrote more than eighty operas, the best known of which is '' Il matrimonio segreto'' (1792); most of h ...
's ''Il matrimonio segreto
' (''The Secret Marriage'') is a dramma giocoso in two acts, music by Domenico Cimarosa, on a libretto by Giovanni Bertati, based on the 1766 play '' The Clandestine Marriage'' by George Colman the Elder and David Garrick. It was first performe ...
'', and Jemmy in Rossini's ''William Tell
William Tell (german: Wilhelm Tell, ; french: Guillaume Tell; it, Guglielmo Tell; rm, Guglielm Tell) is a folk hero of Switzerland.
According to the legend, Tell was an expert mountain climber and marksman with a crossbow who assassinated Albr ...
''.[
In 1836 Sacchi was committed to the ]Teatro Comunale di Bologna
The Teatro Comunale di Bologna is an opera house in Bologna, Italy. Typically, it presents eight operas with six performances during its November to April season.
While there had been various theatres presenting opera in Bologna since the early 1 ...
where she portrayed Eudora in Donizetti's ''Belisario
''Belisario'' (''Belisarius'') is a ''tragedia lirica'' (tragic opera) in three acts by Gaetano Donizetti. Salvadore Cammarano wrote the Italian libretto after Luigi Marchionni's adaptation of play, ''Belisarius'', first staged in Munich in 18 ...
'' and Imelda in Donizetti's '' Parisina'' among other roles. In 1837 she returned to the Teatro Regio di Parma to portray the role of Lisa in Bellini's ''La sonnambula
''La sonnambula'' (''The Sleepwalker'') is an opera semiseria in two acts, with music in the ''bel canto'' tradition by Vincenzo Bellini set to an Italian libretto by Felice Romani, based on a scenario for a ''ballet-pantomime'' written by ...
'' opposite Joséphine de Méric
Josephine may refer to:
People
* Josephine (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name)
* Josephine (singer), a Greek pop singer
Places
* Josephine, Texas, United States
* Mount Josephine (disambiguation)
* Josephine C ...
as Amina. In 1838 she portrayed Countess Almaviva in the world premiere of Luigi Ricci's ''The Marriage of Figaro'' at La Scala. She was heard in Parma
Parma (; egl, Pärma, ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, music, art, prosciutto (ham), cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,292 inhabitants, Parma is the second mos ...
again in January 1839 as Anaide in ''Mosè in Egitto
''Mosè in Egitto'' (; "''Moses in Egypt''") is a three-act opera written by Gioachino Rossini to an Italian language, Italian libretto by Andrea Leone Tottola, which was based on a 1760 play by Francesco Ringhieri, ''L'Osiride''. It premièred ...
''. Some of her last operatic appearances were at La Scala in 1839 in the world premieres of Donizetti's ''Gianni di Parigi
''Gianni di Parigi'' is an 1839 ''melodramma comico'' (''opera buffa'') in two acts with music by Gaetano Donizetti to a libretto by Felice Romani, which had previously been set by Francesco Morlacchi in 1818 and by Giovanni Antonio Speranza in ...
'' (Lorezza) and 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 ...
's '' Oberto'' (Cuniza).[
]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sacchi, Marietta
Italian operatic sopranos
Year of death missing
Year of birth missing
19th-century Italian women opera singers