Giuseppe Lillo
Encyclopedia
Giuseppe Lillo was an Italian
composer
. He is best known for his opera
s which followed in the same vein of Gioachino Rossini. He also produced works for solo piano, a small amount of sacred music, and some chamber music
.
in the Province of Lecce
, Lillo was the son of conductor Giosuè Lillo. He received his earliest musical training from his father before entering the Naples Conservatory where he studied harmony and counterpoint with Giovanni Furno, piano with Francesco Lanza, and composition with Niccolò Antonio Zingarelli
. His first composition, a mass
for four voices and orchestra, premiered to a warm reception in 1834.
As a composer Lillo primarily composed music for the stage. His first opera, La moglie per 24 ore, ossia L’ammalato di buona salute, premiered successfully at the Real Collegio di Musica during Carnival
of 1834. He quickly gained a great deal of popularity with the Naples public with opera seria
s like Il gioiello (1835), Odda di Bernaver (1837), and Il conte di Chalais (1939). The pinnacle of his success came with his only opera comica, L’osteria di Andujar, which premiered in Fondo on 30 September 1840. After 1840, Lillo composed several more operas up through 1853, most of which were received with poor or mediocre responses. He was never able to re-obtain the popularity that he had enjoyed earlier in his career.
Around 1840 Lillo was appointed joint music director of the Teatro di San Carlo
with Giacomo Cordella. He also began teaching piano in the early 1940s. He joined the faculty of the Naples Conservatory sometime around 1850, eventually being appointed professor of harmony in 1859; a position he held until his death in Naples four year later.
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
. He is best known for his opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
s which followed in the same vein of Gioachino Rossini. He also produced works for solo piano, a small amount of sacred music, and some chamber music
Chamber music
Chamber music is a form of classical music, written for a small group of instruments which traditionally could be accommodated in a palace chamber. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small number of performers with one performer to a part...
.
Life and career
Born in GalatinaGalatina
Galatina , known before the unification of Italy as San Pietro in Galatina, is a town and comune in the Italian province of Lecce in Apulia.Among the most important cities in Salento, it is situated some 21 km south of the city of Lecce....
in the Province of Lecce
Province of Lecce
The Province of Lecce is a province in the Apulia region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Lecce. Totally included in the Salento peninsula, it is the second most populous province in Apulia and the twenty-first most populous in Italy....
, Lillo was the son of conductor Giosuè Lillo. He received his earliest musical training from his father before entering the Naples Conservatory where he studied harmony and counterpoint with Giovanni Furno, piano with Francesco Lanza, and composition with Niccolò Antonio Zingarelli
Niccolò Antonio Zingarelli
Niccolò Antonio Zingarelli was an Italian composer, chiefly of opera.-Early career:Zingarelli was born in Naples, where he studied at the Santa Maria di Loreto Conservatory under Fenaroli and Speranza....
. His first composition, a mass
Mass (music)
The Mass, a form of sacred musical composition, is a choral composition that sets the invariable portions of the Eucharistic liturgy to music...
for four voices and orchestra, premiered to a warm reception in 1834.
As a composer Lillo primarily composed music for the stage. His first opera, La moglie per 24 ore, ossia L’ammalato di buona salute, premiered successfully at the Real Collegio di Musica during Carnival
Carnival
Carnaval is a festive season which occurs immediately before Lent; the main events are usually during February. Carnaval typically involves a public celebration or parade combining some elements of a circus, mask and public street party...
of 1834. He quickly gained a great deal of popularity with the Naples public with opera seria
Opera seria
Opera seria is an Italian musical term which refers to the noble and "serious" style of Italian opera that predominated in Europe from the 1710s to c. 1770...
s like Il gioiello (1835), Odda di Bernaver (1837), and Il conte di Chalais (1939). The pinnacle of his success came with his only opera comica, L’osteria di Andujar, which premiered in Fondo on 30 September 1840. After 1840, Lillo composed several more operas up through 1853, most of which were received with poor or mediocre responses. He was never able to re-obtain the popularity that he had enjoyed earlier in his career.
Around 1840 Lillo was appointed joint music director of the Teatro di San Carlo
Teatro di San Carlo
The Real Teatro di San Carlo is an opera house in Naples, Italy. It is the oldest continuously active such venue in Europe.Founded by the Bourbon Charles VII of Naples of the Spanish branch of the dynasty, the theatre was inaugurated on 4 November 1737 — the king's name day — with a performance...
with Giacomo Cordella. He also began teaching piano in the early 1940s. He joined the faculty of the Naples Conservatory sometime around 1850, eventually being appointed professor of harmony in 1859; a position he held until his death in Naples four year later.
List of operas
- La moglie per 24 ore, ossia L’ammalato di buona salute, opera buffa in 2 acts, libretto by A. Passaro, Naples, Real Collegio di Musica, carnival 1834
- Il gioiello, opera semiseria in 2 acts, libretto by Leopoldo Tarantini, Naples, Teatro Nuovo, autumn 1835
- Odda di Bernaver, opera seria in 2 acts, libretto by Giovanni Emanuele Bidera, Naples, Teatro San Carlo, 28 February 1837
- Rosmunda in Ravenna, tragedia lirica in 2 acts, libretto by Luisa Amalia Paladini, Venice, Teatro La Fenice, 26 December 1837
- Alisa di Rieux, opera semiseria in 3 acts, libretto by Gaetano RossiGaetano RossiGaetano Rossi was an Italian writer who wrote opera libretti for several composers including Mayr, Rossini, Donizetti, Mercadante, Pacini, and Meyerbeer.-Biography:...
, Rome, Teatro Argentina, spring 1838 - La modista, opera semiseria in 2 acts, Florence, Teatro La Pergola, 9 May 1839
- Il conte di Chalais, opera seria in 2 acts, libretto by Salvatore CammaranoSalvatore CammaranoSalvadore Cammarano was a prolific Italian librettist and playwright perhaps best known for writing the text of Lucia di Lammermoor for Gaetano Donizetti....
, Naples, Teatro San Carlo, October 1839 - Le disgrazie di un bel giovane, ossia Il zio e il nipote, opera giocosa in 2 acts, libretto by Leopoldo Tarantini, Florence, Teatro La Pergola, spring 1840
- Le nozze campestri, dramma per musica in 1 atto, libretto by Giovanni SchmidtGiovanni Schmidt-Life:He moved to Naples whilst still young and stayed there his whole life. Between 1800 and 1840 he wrote libretti for 45 operas, especially for the Teatro San Carlo, for which he was official poet. He and Andrea Leone Tottola were the two librettists who dominated theatrical life in Naples in...
, Naples, Teatro San Carlo, 30 May 1840 - L’osteria di Andujar, opera comica in 3 acts, libretto by Leopoldo Tarantini, Naples, Teatro del Fondo, 30 September 1840
- Cristina di Svezia, tragedia lirica in 3 acts, libretto by Salvatore Cammarano, Naples, Teatro San Carlo, 21 January 1841
- Lara, tragedia lirica in 2 acts, libretto by Leopoldo Tarantini, Naples, Teatro San Carlo, carnival 1842
- Il cavaliere di San Giorgio, ossia Il mulatto, opera semiseria in 2 acts, libretto by Jacopo FerrettiJacopo FerrettiJacopo Ferretti was an Italian writer, poet and opera librettist.He is most famous for having supplied the libretti for two operas by Rossiniand for five operas by Donizetti....
, Turin, Teatro Carignano, autumn 1846 - Caterina Howard, opera tragica in 4 acts, libretto by G. Giachetti, Naples, Teatro San Carlo, 26 September 1849
- La Delfina, opera semiseria in 2 acts, libretto by M. d’Arienzo, Naples, Teatro Nuovo, March 1850
- La gioventù di Shakespeare, ossia Il sogno d’una notte estiva, commedia lirica in 3 acts, libretto by G.S. Giannini, Naples, Teatro Nuovo, 29 December 1851
- Ser Babbeo, opera semiseria in 3 acts, libretto by L.E. Bardare, Naples, Teatro Nuovo, 8 May 1853
- Il figlio della schiava, dramma lirico in 3 acts, libretto by G.S. Giannini, Naples, Teatro del Fondo, 9 July 1853