Girolamo Abos, last name also given Avos or d'Avossa and baptized Geronimo Abos (16 November 1715 – May 1760), was a

Maltese Maltese may refer to: * Someone or something of, from, or related to Malta * Maltese alphabet * Maltese cuisine * Maltese culture * Maltese language, the Semitic language spoken by Maltese people * Maltese people, people from Malta or of Maltese ...

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 both

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 ...

s and

church music Church music is a genre of Christian music written for performance in church, or any musical setting of ecclesiastical liturgy, or music set to words expressing propositions of a sacred nature, such as a hymn. History Early Christian musi ...

. Born in

Valletta Valletta ( ; , ) is the capital city of Malta and one of its 68 Local councils of Malta, council areas. Located between the Grand Harbour to the east and Marsamxett Harbour to the west, its population as of 2021 was 5,157. As Malta’s capital ...

, Malta, son of Gian Tommaso Abos, whose father was a Frenchman from

Castellane Castellane (; Provençal dialect, Provençal Occitan language, Occitan: ''Castelana'') is a Communes of France, commune in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence Departments of France, department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region ...

and Rosa Farrugia, Abos studied under

Leonardo Leo Leonardo Leo (5 August 1694 – 31 October 1744), more correctly Leonardo Ortensio Salvatore de Leo, was a Baroque music, Baroque composer. Biography Leo was born in San Vito degli Schiavoni (currently known as San Vito dei Normanni, province of ...

and

Francesco Durante Francesco Durante (31 March 1684 – 30 September 1755) was an Italian composer of the Neapolitan School. Best known for his church music, he was also an important teacher, instructing Niccolò Jommelli, Giovanni Paisiello, Giovanni Battista P ...

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

. In 1756, he became ''Maestro al Cembalo'' (Director of Music) at the Italian Theatre in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. In 1758 he returned to Italy as a teacher at the Conservatorio della Pietà de' Turchini in Naples, where

Giovanni Paisiello Giovanni Paisiello (or Paesiello; 9 May 1740 – 5 June 1816) was an Italian composer of the Classical era, and was the most popular opera composer of the late 1700s. His operatic style influenced Mozart and Rossini. Life Paisiello was born i ...

was one of his pupils . He wrote fourteen operas for the opera houses in Naples,

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, ...

, and London, of which ''Tito Manlio'' (Naples, 1751) was the most successful. After 1758 he composed a good deal of church music, including seven masses and several

litanies Litany, in Christian worship and some forms of Jewish worship, is a form of prayer used in services and processions, and consisting of a number of petitions. The word comes through Latin ''wikt:litania, litania'' from Ancient Greek wikt:λιτα ...

. He died in Naples. Many of his sacred works, oratorios, and the opera Pelopida have been edited by the Australian musicologist and conductor

Richard Divall Richard Sydney Divall (9 September 1945 – 15 January 2017) was an Australian conductor and musicologist. Born in Sydney, and after leaving Manly Boys High School, Divall joined the Australian Broadcasting Commission as a music producer in th ...

, and are freely available.

List of operas composed by Abos

References

*''Stabat Mater'' Gerolamo Abos ed. Joseph Vella Bondin ''Recent Researches in the Music of the Classical Era'', 68, A-R Editions, Inc., Middleton, Wisconsin 2003, . * * Hanns-Bertold Dietz, Joseph Vella Bondin, "Abos, Girolamo ", ''The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, Second Edition'' (London: Macmillan, 2001). .

External links

* 1715 births 1760 deaths 18th-century Italian male composers Classical composers of church music Italian Baroque composers Italian male classical composers Italian male opera composers Maltese classical composers Maltese male musicians Musicians from Valletta 18th-century Maltese people Male classical composers {{Opera-bio-stub