Benedetto Ferrari
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Benedetto Ferrari ( – 22 October 1681) was an Italian composer, particularly of opera, librettist, and
theorbo The theorbo is a plucked string instrument of the lute family, with an extended neck that houses the second pegbox. Like a lute, a theorbo has a curved-back sound box with a flat top, typically with one or three sound holes decorated with rose ...
player.


Biography

Benedetto Ferrari was born in
Reggio nell'Emilia Reggio nell'Emilia (; ), usually referred to as Reggio Emilia, or simply Reggio by its inhabitants, and known until 1861 as Reggio di Lombardia, is a city in northern Italy, in the Emilia-Romagna region. It has about 172,518 inhabitants and is ...
. He worked in
Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...
(1617–1618),
Parma Parma (; ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, Giuseppe Verdi, music, art, prosciutto (ham), Parmesan, cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,986 inhabitants as of 2025, ...
(1619–1623), and possibly in
Modena Modena (, ; ; ; ; ) 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 Italy. It has 184,739 inhabitants as of 2025. A town, and seat of an archbis ...
at some time between 1623 and 1637. He created music and libretti in
Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...
and
Bologna Bologna ( , , ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in northern Italy. It is the List of cities in Italy, seventh most populous city in Italy, with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nationalities. Its M ...
, 1637–1644. Ferrari's ''Andromeda'', with music by
Francesco Manelli Francesco Manelli (Mannelli) ( 1595 – 1667) was a Roman Baroque composer, particularly of opera, and a theorbo player. He is most well known for his collaboration with fellow Roman composer Benedetto Ferrari in bringing commercial opera to Venic ...
, was the first Venetian opera performed in a
public theatre The Public Theater is an arts organization in New York City. Founded by Joseph Papp, The Public Theater was originally the Shakespeare Workshop in 1954; its mission was to support emerging playwrights and performers.Epstein, Helen. ''Joe Papp: A ...
(in 1637). Subsequently, he provided both the text and the music for two operas, both presented in Venice: ''La maga fulminata'' (1638) and ''Il pastor regio'' (1640). The 1641 Bolognese staging of the latter included, as its final duet, the text "Pur ti miro, pur ti godo," which was later reused, possibly with Ferrari's music, for the final duet in the surviving manuscripts of
Monteverdi Claudio Giovanni Antonio Monteverdi (baptized 15 May 1567 – 29 November 1643) was an Italian composer, choirmaster and string player. A composer of both secular and sacred music, and a pioneer in the development of opera, he is considere ...
's ''
L'Incoronazione di Poppea ''L'incoronazione di Poppea'' (Stattkus-Verzeichnis, SV 308, ''The Coronation of Poppaea'') is an Italian List of operas by Claudio Monteverdi, opera by Claudio Monteverdi. It was Monteverdi's last opera, with a libretto by Giovanni Francesco Buse ...
''.Questions of Authorship in Josquin, Monteverdi, and Mozart: Documentary versus Stylistic Evidence
By Jillian Andersen.
University of Puget Sound The University of Puget Sound is a private liberal arts college in Tacoma, Washington, United States. It was founded in 1888. The institution offers a variety of undergraduate degrees as well as five graduate programs in counseling, education, oc ...
.
Sound Ideas Sound Ideas Canada Ltd. (also known as Sound Ideas) is a Canadian audio company and the archive of one of the largest commercially available sound effects libraries in the world. It has accumulated the sound effects, which it releases in collect ...
. Summer Research 2012. Ferrari went to
Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...
in 1651, serving the emperor Ferdinand III. Upon returning to Modena in 1653 he was appointed court choirmaster. His post was eliminated in 1662 but reinstated in 1674, after which he served until his death at Modena. Many sources recount his virtuosity as a theorbo player. None of his operatic music survives. Extant works include
libretti A libretto (From the Italian word , ) is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major l ...
, an
oratorio An oratorio () is a musical composition with dramatic or narrative text for choir, soloists and orchestra or other ensemble. Similar to opera, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an instrumental ensemble, various distinguisha ...
, and three books of
monodies In music, monody refers to a solo vocal style distinguished by having a single melodic line and instrumental accompaniment. Although such music is found in various cultures throughout history, the term is specifically applied to Italian song of ...
under the title ''Musiche varie a voce sola'' (Venice 1633, 1637, 1641). Though the last were composed within a relatively short time span, they reflect the changing style of accompanied monody, from the emergence of ''recitar cantando'' (midway between song and speech) to the vocal style that is typical of mid-17th century opera, with a more distinctive melody and a clearer rhythm.


References


Bibliography

* * * Fuller-Maitland, John Alexander and George Fox (1880). ''A Dictionary of Music and Musicians (A.D. 1450-1880)''. London: Macmillan. * Lee, E. M. (1909). ''The Story of Opera''. New York: Scribner's. * Smith, C. S. (1948). ''Makers of Opera''. New York: H. Bittner. 1600s births 1681 deaths Italian male classical composers Italian Baroque composers Italian opera librettists Theorbists 17th-century Italian composers Italian male dramatists and playwrights 17th-century Italian male musicians {{Italy-composer-stub