Ignazio Fiorillo (11 May 1715 – June 1787) was an Italian composer. He is known as an author of

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 abou ...

, often composed to the

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 ...

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 Libretto, librettist, considered the most important writer of ''opera seria'' libretti. Early ...

Biography

Fiorillo was born in

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 ...

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

. His musical education was supported by

Count Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

Ferdinand Otto von Traun, who allowed him to study at the

Naples Conservatory This is a list of music conservatories in Naples, Italy. Conservatorio di San Pietro a Majella The Naples Conservatory of Music is a music school located in Naples, Italy. It is situated in the complex of San Pietro a Majella. It was originally ...

, as a pupil of

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 ...

.Jakubcová (2007), p. 172 His career began with opera ''L'egeste'', premiered in

Trieste Trieste ( , ; ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital and largest city of the Regions of Italy#Autonomous regions with special statute, autonomous region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, as well as of the Province of Trieste, ...

in 1733. Another opera, ''Il vincitor di se stesso'', was performed in 1741 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 Fiorillo introduced himself as an opera composer also in

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

and

Padua Padua ( ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Veneto, northern Italy, and the capital of the province of Padua. The city lies on the banks of the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice and southeast of Vicenza, and has a population of 20 ...

.Jakubcová (2007), p. 172 In the middle of the 1740s, he made several European tours as a member of the ensemble of Phillip Nicolini, specialised in children mime (''Teatro dell'Opera Pantomima dei Piccolo Hollandesi di Nicolini'').Jakubcová (2007), p. 172 Fiorillo was engaged as a composer for their performances. In 1749, he resided with Nicolini in

Braunschweig Braunschweig () or Brunswick ( ; from Low German , local dialect: ) is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city in Lower Saxony, Germany, north of the Harz Mountains at the farthest navigable point of the river Oker, which connects it to the ...

, at the court of Carl I. von Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel. Fiorillo was appointed court composer in 1750, and Nicolini became the director of court theatres. In 1762, Fiorillo was engaged by Frederick II, Landgrave of Hesse-Cassel at his court in

Kassel Kassel (; in Germany, spelled Cassel until 1926) is a city on the Fulda River in North Hesse, northern Hesse, in Central Germany (geography), central Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Regierungsbezirk Kassel (region), Kassel and the d ...

. He significantly improved the quality of the court opera in Kassel.Jakubcová (2007), p. 172 Ingazio Fiorillo retired in 1779, and died in

Fritzlar Fritzlar () is a small town (pop. 15,000) in the Schwalm-Eder-Kreis, Schwalm-Eder district in northern Hesse, Germany, north of Frankfurt, with a storied history. The town has a medieval center ringed by a wall with numerous watch towers. high ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. He was the father of

Federigo Fiorillo Federigo Fiorillo (baptized 1 June 1755 Brunswick, Germany, died after 1823) was a mandolinist and composer, who wrote thirty-six caprices for violin, also called études. Life and career Fiorillo's father was Ignazio Fiorillo, a Naples, Italy, ...

(1753 - 1823), a violinist and composer, best known for a collection of etudes.

Works

Fiorillo composed the majority of his works during his stay in Braunschweig. His output include operas, intermezzos and stage music for Nicolini's ensemble. His composing style is similar to

Johann Adolph Hasse Johann Adolph Hasse (baptised 25 March 1699 – 16 December 1783) was an 18th-century German composer, singer and teacher of music. Immensely popular in his time, Hasse was best known for his prolific operatic output, though he also composed a co ...

, with apparent melodic invention and with dramatic expression concentrated in the vocal parts. The instrumental elements in his compositions are minimised. Selected operas * ''L'egeste'' (1733) * ''Il vincitor di se stesso'' (1741) * ''

Adriano in Siria ''Adriano in Siria'' (''Hadrian in Syria'') is a libretto by Italian poet Metastasio first performed, with music by Antonio Caldara, in Vienna in 1732, and turned into an opera by more than 60 other composers during the next century. Metastasio ...

'' (1750) * ''Il Demofoonte'' (1750) * ''La Didone abbandonata'' (1750) * '' Siface'' (1752) * '' Alessandro nell'Indie'' (1752) * ''Il Ciro riconosciuto'' (1753) * ''Il Demetrio'' (1753) * ''Lucio Vero'' (1756) * ''La Nitteti'' (1758)

Notes

References

External links

List of works - operone.de
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fiorillo, Ignazio 1715 births 1787 deaths 18th-century Italian male musicians Neapolitan school composers 18th-century Italian composers Italian opera composers Italian male opera composers Musicians from the Kingdom of Naples