Emilio Pizzi (1 February 1861 – 27 November 1940) was an Italian composer. His output of works include 10 operas, a
ballet
Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form ...
, 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 ...
, and numerous vocal and chamber works.
Pizzi graduated from the
Milan Conservatory in 1884 where he was a pupil of
Antonio Bazzini and
Amilcare Ponchielli
Amilcare Ponchielli (, ; 31 August 1834 – 16 January 1886) was an Italian opera composer, best known for his opera ''La Gioconda''. He was married to the soprano Teresina Brambilla.
Life and work
Born in Paderno Fasolaro (now Paderno Ponchie ...
and attended classes with
Pietro Mascagni
Pietro Mascagni (7 December 1863 – 2 August 1945) was an Italian composer primarily known for his operas. His 1890 masterpiece ''Cavalleria rusticana'' caused one of the greatest sensations in opera history and single-handedly ushered in the ' ...
.
Shortly after completing his education, he moved to London where he remained for almost 13 years. In 1885 his
operetta ''Lina'' won the Bonetti Competition. In 1889 his first opera, ''
Guglielmo Ratcliff'', won first prize at the Baruzzi Competition. His fourth opera, ''
Gabriella'', was commissioned by
Adelina Patti
Adelina Patti (19 February 184327 September 1919) was an Italian 19th-century opera singer, earning huge fees at the height of her career in the music capitals of Europe and America. She first sang in public as a child in 1851, and gave her la ...
and she portrayed the title role when the work premiered in Boston in 1893 at the Metropolitan Theatre with the composer in attendance.
Pizzi returned to Italy in 1897 to succeed
Antonio Cesaro
Claudio Castagnoli ( ; born 27 December 1980) is a Swiss professional wrestler currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) and is a member of the Blackpool Combat Club stable. Castagnoli also performs for AEW's sister promotion, Ring of Hono ...
as the
maestro di cappella at the
Santa Maria Maggiore
The Basilica of Saint Mary Major ( it, Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore, ; la, Basilica Sanctae Mariae Maioris), or church of Santa Maria Maggiore, is a Major papal basilica as well as one of the Seven Pilgrim Churches of Rome and the larges ...
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 ...
. He also taught at the
Bergamo Conservatory The Conservatorio Gaetano Donizetti, more commonly known in English as the Bergamo Conservatory, is a music conservatory in Bergamo, Italy. Founded in 1805, the school was an important early conservatory model which had a wide impact on similar sc ...
. He returned to London in 1900 where he became a popular composer of vocal pieces. He died in Milan at the age of 79.
Operas
*''Lina'' (1885)
*''Guglielmo Ratcliff'' (1889, Bologna)
*''Editha'' (1890, Milan)
*''Viviana'' (early 1890s, never performed)
*''Gabriella'' (1893, Boston)
*''The bric-a-brac-Will'' (1895, London)
*''Ultimo canto'' (1896, Vienna)
*''Rosalba'' (1899, Turin)
*''La vendetta'' (1906, Cologne)
*''Ivania'' (1926, Bergamo)
Sources
Operisti minori dell'800 italiano By Corrado Ambìveri
References
External links
*
William Ratcliff , opera romantica in un prologo e tre atti 1889 publication, Italian, digitized by
BYU on archive.org
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pizzi, Emilio
1861 births
1940 deaths
Academic staff of the Bergamo Conservatory
Italian classical composers
Italian male classical composers
Italian opera composers
Male opera composers
Musicians from Verona
Milan Conservatory alumni