Giuseppe Gazzaniga (5 October 1743 – 1 February 1818) was a member of the

Neapolitan school In music history, the Neapolitan School is a group, associated with opera, of 17th and 18th-century composers who studied or worked in Naples, Italy,Don Michael Randel (2003). ''The Harvard Dictionary of Music'', p. 549. . the best known of whom ...

of opera

composers A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Classical music, Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. E ...

. He composed fifty-one

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 ...

s and is considered to be one of the last

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

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 ...

composers.

Biography

Born in

Verona Verona ( , ; vec, Verona or ) is a city on the Adige River in Veneto, Northern Italy, Italy, with 258,031 inhabitants. It is one of the seven provincial capitals of the region. It is the largest city Comune, municipality in the region and the ...

, Gazzaniga was initially intended for the priesthood at the urging of his devout parents. He eventually convinced his father to allow him to pursue a career in music and began studies first in

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

and then at the Conservatorio di Sant'Onofrio a Porta Capuana 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 ...

. While there, he was a pupil of

Niccolò Piccinni Niccolò Piccinni (; 16 January 1728 – 7 May 1800) was an Italian composer of symphonies, sacred music, chamber music, and opera. Although he is somewhat obscure today, Piccinni was one of the most popular composers of opera—particularly th ...

and

Nicola Porpora Nicola (or Niccolò) Antonio Porpora (17 August 16863 March 1768) was an Italian composer and teacher of singing of the Baroque music, Baroque era, whose most famous singing students were the castrati Farinelli and Caffarelli (castrato), Caffarel ...

. Gazzaniga presented his first opera, '' Il barone di Trocchia'', at the

Teatro di San Carlo The Real Teatro di San Carlo ("Royal Theatre of Saint Charles"), as originally named by the Bourbon monarchy but today known simply as the Teatro (di) San Carlo, is an opera house in Naples, Italy, connected to the Royal Palace and adjacent t ...

in 1768. He would spend the next several decades writing mostly operas in Italy with the exception of a few trips to

Dresden Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label=Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth larg ...

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

, and

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

. His most successful opera was his ''

Don Giovanni Tenorio ', (English: ''Don Giovanni, or The Stone Guest'') also known as ''Don Giovanni Tenorio'' is a one-act opera (dramma giocoso) by the Italian composer Giuseppe Gazzaniga. The opera was first performed at the Teatro San Moisè, Venice, on 5 February ...

'' written in 1787 to a libretto by

Giovanni Bertati Giovanni Bertati (10 July 1735 – 1 March 1815) was an Italian Libretto, librettist. Bertati was born in Martellago, Italy. In 1763, he wrote his first libretto, ''La morte di Dimone'' ("The Death of Dimone"), set to music by Antonio Tozzi. Two ye ...

, possibly an inspiration for the libretto of

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his ra ...

's ''

Don Giovanni ''Don Giovanni'' (; K. 527; Vienna (1788) title: , literally ''The Rake Punished, or Don Giovanni'') is an opera in two acts with music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to an Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte. Its subject is a centuries-old Spanis ...

''. His last opera, '' Martino Carbonaro'', was performed at the

Teatro San Moisè The Teatro San Moisè was a theatre and opera house in Venice, active from 1620 to 1818. It was in a prominent location near the Palazzo Giustinian and the church of San Moisè at the entrance to the Grand Canal. History Built by the San Bernaba ...

in 1801.Obscure composers (3)
He also wrote a symphony and three piano concertos. In 1791, he became musical director of

Crema Cathedral Crema Cathedral ( it, Duomo di Crema, ''Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta'') is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Crema, northern Italy. Dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, it is the seat of the Bishop of Crema. History The first cathedra ...

in the

Lombardy Lombardy ( it, Lombardia, Lombard language, Lombard: ''Lombardia'' or ''Lumbardia' '') is an administrative regions of Italy, region of Italy that covers ; it is located in the northern-central part of the country and has a population of about 10 ...

region of northern

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, where he composed numerous sacred works including several

cantatas A cantata (; ; literally "sung", past participle feminine singular of the Italian verb ''cantare'', "to sing") is a vocal composition with an instrumental accompaniment, typically in several movements, often involving a choir. The meaning of t ...

oratorios 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 ...

, and masses. He remained in that position until his death in 1818.Giuseppe Gazzaniga: Information and Much More from Answers.com
/ref> His life and works were the subject of a detailed study by the prominent 19th-century German critic

Friedrich Chrysander Karl Franz Friedrich Chrysander (8 July 1826 – 3 September 1901) was a German music historian, critic and publisher, whose edition of the works of George Frideric Handel and authoritative writings on many other composers established him as a ...

Works

Operas

*'' Il barone di Trocchia'' (libretto by

Francesco Cerlone Francesco, the Italian (and original) version of the personal name " Francis", is the most common given name among males in Italy. Notable persons with that name include: People with the given name Francesco * Francesco I (disambiguation), sev ...

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 ...

, 1768,

) *''La locanda'' (libretto by

, 1771,

) *''Il Calandrino'' (libretto by

, opera buffa, 1771,

) *''Ezio'' (libretto di

Pietro Metastasio Pietro Antonio Domenico Trapassi (3 January 1698 – 12 April 1782), better known by his pseudonym of Pietro Metastasio (), was an Italian poet and librettist, considered the most important writer of '' opera seria'' libretti. Early life Me ...

opera seria ''Opera seria'' (; plural: ''opere serie''; usually called ''dramma per musica'' or ''melodramma serio'') is an Italian musical term which refers to the noble and "serious" style of Italian opera that predominated in Europe from the 1710s to abo ...

, 1772,

) *''La tomba di Merlino'' (libretto by

, opera buffa 1772,

) *''L'isola di Alcina'' (libretto by

, opera buffa, 1772,

) *''Zon-Zon (L'inimico delle donne)'' (libretto by

, opera buffa, 1773,

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

) *''Armida'' (opera seria, 1773,

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

) *''Il matrimonio per inganno'' (opera buffa, 1773,

Pavia Pavia (, , , ; la, Ticinum; Medieval Latin: ) is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy in northern Italy, south of Milan on the lower Ticino river near its confluence with the Po. It has a population of c. 73,086. The city was the capit ...

) *''Il ciarlatano in fiera'' (libretto by

Pietro Chiari Pietro Chiari (; 25 December 1712 – 31 August 1785) was an Italian catholic priest, playwright, novelist and libretto, librettist. Life Chiari was born and died in Brescia. He was a Society of Jesus, Jesuit until leaving the Religious order ...

, opera buffa, 1774,

) *''Perseo ed Andromeda'' (libretto by Vittorio Amedeo Cigna-Santi, 1775, opera seria,

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...

) *''L'isola di Calipso'' (libretto by Giovanni Pindemonte, opera seria, 1775,

) *''Il re di Mamalucchi'' (opera buffa, 1775,

) *''Gli errori di Telemaco'' (libretto by Carlo Giuseppe Lanfranchi-Rossi, opera seria, 1776,

Pisa Pisa ( , or ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for its leaning tower, the cit ...

) *''La bizzaria degli umori'' (opera buffa, 1777,

Bologna Bologna (, , ; egl, label= Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nat ...

) *''Il marchese di Verde Antico'' (composto in collaborazione con Francesco Piticchio, opera buffa, 1778,

) *''La vendemmia'' (libretto by

, opera buffa, 1778,

) *''Il re dei pazzi'' (opera buffa, 1778,

) *''La finta folletto o Lo spirito folletto'' (opera buffa, 1778,

) *''Il disertore (Il disertor francese)'' (libretto di Ferdinando Casoni, 1779,

) *''Antigono'' (libretto di

, opera seria, 1779,

) *''Il ritorno di Ulisse e Penelope'' (libretto by Giovanni Andrea Monigalia, opera seria, 1779,

) *''La viaggiatrice'' (libretto by Francesco Saverio Zini, opera buffa, 1780,

) *''Antigona'' (libretto by Gaetano Roccaforte, opera seria, 1781,

) *''La stravagante'' (libretto by Francesco Saverio Zini, opera buffa, 1781,

) *''Amor per oro'' (libretto by Cerilo Arcomeno, opera buffa, 1782,

) *''La creduta infedele'' (libretto by

, opera buffa, 1783,

) *''L'intrigo delle mogli'' (libretto by Giuseppe Palomba, opera buffa, 1783,

) *''La dama contadina'' (opera buffa, 1784,

) *''Il serraglio di Osmano o le tre sultane'' (libretto by

, opera buffa, 1784,

) *''Tulio Ostilio'' (libretto by Francesco Ballani, opera seria, 1784,

) *''La moglie capricciosa'' (opera buffa, 1785,

) *''Il finto cieco'' (libretto by

Lorenzo Da Ponte Lorenzo Da Ponte (; 10 March 174917 August 1838) was an Italian, later American, opera librettist, poet and Roman Catholic priest. He wrote the libretti for 28 operas by 11 composers, including three of Mozart's most celebrated operas: ''The Marr ...

opera buffa, 1786,

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

) *''Circe'' (libretto by Domenico Perelli, opera seria, 1786,

) *''La contessa di Novaluna'' (libretto by

, opera buffa, 1786,

) *''Le donne fanatiche'' (libretto by

, 1786,

) *''

'' (libretto di

, dramma giocoso, 1787,

) *''La Didone'' (opera seria, 1787,

) *''La cameriera di spirito'' (libretto by Gaetano Fiorio, opera buffa, 1787,

) *''L'amore costante (La costanza in amor rende felice)'' (libretto di

, opera buffa, 1787,

) *''Erifile'' (opera seria, 1789,

) *''Gli Argonauti in Colco'' (libretto by Antonio Simeone Sografi, opera seria, 1790,

) *''Idomeneo'' (libretto by Gaetano Sentor, opera seria, 1790,

Padua Padua ( ; it, Padova ; vec, Pàdova) is a city and ''comune'' in Veneto, northern Italy. Padua is on the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice. It is the capital of the province of Padua. It is also the economic and communications hub of the ...

) *''La disfatta dei Mori'' (libretto by Giandomenico Boggio, opera seria, 1791,

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, 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 ...

) *''La dama soldato'' (libretto by

Caterino Mazzolà Caterino Tommaso Mazzolà (18 January 1745 at Longarone – 16 July 1806 in Venice) was an Italian poet and librettist. Born into a wealthy family from the islands of Murano, he and his family moved to Venice around 1767, but after a few years h ...

, opera buffa, 1792,

) *''La pastorella nobile'' (opera buffa, 1793, Fortezza di Palma) *''La donna astuta'' (opera buffa, 1793,

) *''Il divorzio senza matrimonio ossia La donna che non parla'' (libretto by Gaetano Sentor, opera buffa, 1794,

Modena Modena (, , ; egl, label=Emilian language#Dialects, Modenese, Mòdna ; ett, Mutna; la, Mutina) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern I ...

) *''Fedeltà e amore alla pruova'' (libretto by Giuseppe Foppa, 1798,

) *''Il marito migliore'' (libretto by Tomaso Menucci di Goro, opera buffa, 1801,

) *'' Martino Carbonaro o sia Gli sposi fuggitivi'' (libretto by Giuseppe Foppa, farsa, 1801,

)

Selected sacred music

* ''San Mauro Abate'' (

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 ...

) * ''Sansone'' (

) * ''I profeti al calvario'' (

) * ''Missa pro defunctis'' * ''Te Deum laudamus'' * ''Requiem'' * ''Gloria in excelsis Deo'' * ''Kyrie breve'' * ''Credo'' * Two different ''Tamtum ergo'' * ''Stabat Mater'' (1800)

Selected instrumental music

* Three piano concertos * One

symphony A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, most often for orchestra. Although the term has had many meanings from its origins in the ancient Greek era, by the late 18th century the word had taken on the meaning com ...

References

External links

Operone List of Gazzaniga's Operas, accessed 24 February 2011
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gazzaniga 1743 births 1818 deaths 18th-century Italian musicians 19th-century Italian musicians Neapolitan school composers Italian composers Italian male composers Musicians from Verona 19th-century Italian male musicians