Michael Rophino Lacy (19 July 1795 – 20 September 1867) was an Irish violinist and composer. The son of an Irish merchant in

Bilbao Bilbao is a city in northern Spain, the largest city in the Provinces of Spain, province of Biscay and in the Basque Country (greater region), Basque Country as a whole. It is also the largest city proper in northern Spain. Bilbao is the List o ...

, Spain, he appeared first there in public as a six-year-old prodigy. In 1802 he was sent to

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( ; ; Gascon language, Gascon ; ) is a city on the river Garonne in the Gironde Departments of France, department, southwestern France. A port city, it is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the Prefectures in F ...

and a year later 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 ...

to study with

Rodolphe Kreutzer Rodolphe Kreutzer (15 November 1766 – 6 January 1831) was a French violinist, teacher, conductor, and composer of forty French operas, including '' La mort d'Abel'' (1810). He is probably best known as the dedicatee of Beethoven's Violin Son ...

. As ''Le Petit Espagnol'' he performed before Napoleon towards the end of 1804 and by October 1805 in London as "The Young Spaniard", his real name not being disclosed before 1807. He performed in Dublin in 1807 alongside Angelica Catalani in Michael Kelly's opera company, and returned there in 1813. He enjoyed a short career as an actor in comedy roles, performing in Dublin, Edinburgh and Glasgow, but in 1818 resumed the musical profession, and by 1820 became leader of the

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 of ...

at the Kings theatre, London. He composed or adapted from other composers a number 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 ...

s and 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 ...

, ''The Israelites in Egypt'' (1833), in which he combined the plots of

Handel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel ( ; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque composer well-known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, concerti grossi, and organ concerti. Born in Halle, Germany, H ...

's '' Israel in Egypt'' and

Rossini Gioachino Antonio Rossini (29 February 1792 – 13 November 1868) was an Italian composer of the late Classical and early Romantic eras. He gained fame for his 39 operas, although he also wrote many songs, some chamber music and piano p ...

's '' Mosè in Egitto''. "Lacy's contemporary fame rested mainly on his rather free English adaptations of French and Italian operas by Auber, Mozart, Rossini and others, which he produced between 1827 and 1833."Axel Klein: "Lacy, Michael Rophino", in: ''The Encyclopaedia of Music in Ireland'', ed. H. White & B. Boydell (Dublin: UCD Press, 2013), p. 575–6. Lacy died in London.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lacy, Michael Rophino 1795 births 1867 deaths 19th-century Irish classical composers 19th-century Irish male musicians Irish male classical composers Irish male violinists Spanish people of Irish descent 19th-century Irish violinists Irish expatriates in Spain