Carlo Evasio Soliva
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Carlo Evasio Soliva (27 November 1791 – 20 December 1853) was a
Swiss Swiss most commonly refers to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Swiss may also refer to: Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss Café, an old café located ...
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Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
composer of
opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...
,
chamber music Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of Musical instrument, instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a Great chamber, palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music ...
, and sacred
choral A choir ( ), also known as a chorale or chorus (from Latin ''chorus'', meaning 'a dance in a circle') is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform or in other words ...
works. Soliva was born in
Casale Monferrato Casale Monferrato () is a town in the Piedmont region of Northwest Italy, northwestern Italy, in the province of Alessandria. It is situated about east of Turin on the right bank of the Po River, Po, where the river runs at the foot of the Montfe ...
,
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to a family of Swiss chocolatiers who had emigrated from the canton of
Ticino Ticino ( ), sometimes Tessin (), officially the Republic and Canton of Ticino or less formally the Canton of Ticino, is one of the Canton of Switzerland, 26 cantons forming the Switzerland, Swiss Confederation. It is composed of eight districts ...
. He studied pianoforte and composition at the
Milan Conservatory The Milan Conservatory, also known as the Conservatorio di Milano and the Conservatorio Giuseppe Verdi, is a Music school, college of music in Milan, Italy. History The conservatory was established by a royal decree of 1807 in Milan, capital ...
. A contemporary of
Gioacchino Rossini Gioachino Antonio Rossini (29 February 1792 – 13 November 1868) was an Italian composer of the late Classical period (music), Classical and early Romantic music, Romantic eras. He gained fame for his 39 operas, although he also wrote man ...
, he is best known for his 1816 opera ''La testa di bronzo'' ("The head of bronze"), which prompted
Stendhal Marie-Henri Beyle (; 23 January 1783 – 23 March 1842), better known by his pen name Stendhal (, , ), was a French writer. Best known for the novels ''Le Rouge et le Noir'' ('' The Red and the Black'', 1830) and ''La Chartreuse de Parme'' ('' T ...
’s immediate enthusiasm: “Ce petit Soliva a la figure chétive d'un homme de génie.” (“That little Soliva has the scanty figure of a man of genius.”)Stendhal, ''Rome, Naples et Florence'', entry for 12 November 1816. After a life spent composing, teaching, and conducting in Italy, Poland, Russia, Switzerland, and France, he died in Paris at the age of 62. The "Carlo Evasio Soliva Competition for Piano and Chamber Music," organized by the Istituto Musicale Soliva, is held annually in the town of his birth.


Professional life

At the
Milan Conservatory The Milan Conservatory, also known as the Conservatorio di Milano and the Conservatorio Giuseppe Verdi, is a Music school, college of music in Milan, Italy. History The conservatory was established by a royal decree of 1807 in Milan, capital ...
, he was at the top of his class. He soon became a conductor at
La Scala La Scala (, , ; officially , ) is a historic opera house in Milan, Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as (, which previously was Santa Maria della Scala, Milan, a church). The premiere performa ...
and "drew inspiration for his music from Mozart, whose music was then fashionable in Milan,"" ''La testa di bronzo'' - Background" on opera.stanford.edu
Retrieved 6 June 2010
his operas being performed frequently from 1807 onwards. When La Scala organized a competition for new librettists in April 1816, the jury gave the top prize to
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 betw ...
but chose the novice Carlo Soliva to compose the music. His work was in Mozart's style and was well-received by local audiences. The following year his first opera, '' La testa di bronzo o sia La capanna solitaria,'' was an immediate and resounding success, but it marked the apex of his popularity. The opera received a record 47 performances in the 1816-1817 season. In 1817 his second opera, ''Berenice d'Armenia,'' received its premiere in Turin, and his third, ''La zingara delle Asturie,'' played at La Scala. Neither was received with great warmth, but in 1818 ''Giulia e Sesto Pompeo'' was a fiasco at La Scala. But as has been noted:
The very reason for Soliva's initial success eventually doomed his career as an operatic composer. Rossini's new style of music was taking all the European stages by storm, and it ended the Milanese Mozart renaissance. After performances of ''La clemenza di Tito'' in 1819, Mozart disappeared from the programs of the La Scala Theater for more than 50 years. Soliva saw no future for his musical style and focused instead on a career as a conductor and teacher. He continued composing sacred vocal works, however, as well as orchestral, chamber, and piano music.
In 1821 he moved to Poland and became director of singing at the conservatory in Warsaw. There he married one of his students, Maria Kralewska, and became friendly with
Frédéric Chopin Frédéric François Chopin (born Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin; 1 March 181017 October 1849) was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist of the Romantic period who wrote primarily for Piano solo, solo piano. He has maintained worldwide renown ...
. He was the conductor in November 1830 for the first performance of Chopin’s piano concerto in E minor. In the turmoil that followed the defeat of the
November Uprising The November Uprising (1830–31) (), also known as the Polish–Russian War 1830–31 or the Cadet Revolution, was an armed rebellion in Russian Partition, the heartland of Partitions of Poland, partitioned Poland against the Russian Empire. ...
, Soliva moved to
St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea. The city had a population of 5,601, ...
where he took up posts as conductor of the Royal Chapel and director of the Imperial Singing School. There he had contact with
Mikhail Glinka Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka ( rus, links=no, Михаил Иванович Глинка, Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka, mʲɪxɐˈil ɨˈvanəvʲɪdʑ ˈɡlʲinkə, Ru-Mikhail-Ivanovich-Glinka.ogg; ) was the first Russian composer to gain wide recognit ...
. From 1841 he lived in the Ticinese village of Semione in the Val di Blenio, where his father had been born. Subsequently, he moved to
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
where he again met Chopin along with
George Sand Amantine Lucile Aurore Dupin de Francueil (; 1 July 1804 – 8 June 1876), best known by her pen name George Sand (), was a French novelist, memoirist and journalist. Being more renowned than either Victor Hugo or Honoré de Balz ...
and probably moved in the circle of
Cristina Trivulzio Belgiojoso Cristina Trivulzio di Belgiojoso (; 28 June 1808, Milan, Lombardy, Italy5 July 1871, near Milan) was an Italian noblewoman, the princess of Belgiojoso, who played a prominent part in Italian unification, Italy's struggle for independence. She is a ...
. He dedicated a ''Salve Regina'' to her husband.


Operas

*''La testa di bronzo o sia La capanna solitaria'', 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 betw ...
. 3 March 1816,
Teatro alla Scala La Scala (, , ; officially , ) is a historic opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as (, which previously was a church). The premiere performance was Antonio Salieri's ''Europa r ...
, Milan *''Berenice d'Armenia'', libretto by
Jacopo Ferretti Jacopo Ferretti (16 July 1784 – 7 March 1852) was an Italian writer, poet and opera librettist. His name is sometimes written as Giacomo Ferretti. He is most famous for having supplied the libretti for two operas composed by Rossini and for fiv ...
. March 1817, Teatro Regio, Turin *''La zingara delle Asturie'', libretto by Felice Romani. 5 August 1817, Teatro alla Scala, Milan *''Giulia e Sesto Pompeo'', libretto by B. Perotti. 24 February 1818, Teatro alla Scala, Milan *''Elena e Malvina'', libretto by Felice Romani. 22 May 1824, Teatro alla Scala, Milan *''Китайские девицы, или Три рода драматического искусства'', Russian libretto based on ''Le cinesi'' by
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 Met ...
. 1833 Большой театр, St Petersburg


References

Notes Sources * * Further reading * *


External links

*
Official website of the Carlo Evasio Soliva Competition for Piano and Chamber Music organized by the Istituto Musicale Soliva
{{DEFAULTSORT:Soliva, Carlo Evasio 1791 births 1853 deaths 19th-century Italian classical composers 19th-century Italian conductors (music) Italian male conductors (music) Italian expatriates in France Italian expatriates in Poland Italian expatriates in Russia Italian opera composers Italian male opera composers Italian people of Swiss descent Milan Conservatory alumni People from Casale Monferrato Swiss classical composers Swiss conductors (music)