Francesco Morlacchi facts for kids
Francesco Morlacchi (born June 14, 1784 – died October 28, 1841) was an Italian composer. He wrote over twenty operas, which are plays set to music. For many years, he worked as the main music director, called a Royal Kapellmeister, in Dresden. He helped make Italian opera very popular there.
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A Young Composer's Journey
Francesco Morlacchi was born in Perugia, Italy. His family loved music, and he started composing at a very young age. He first learned music from his uncle, Giovanni Mazzetti. Later, he studied with Luigi Caruso in Perugia.
He continued his studies in Loreto from 1803 to 1804 with Zingarelli. Finally, in 1805, he went to a school in Bologna. There, he studied with Stanislao Mattei and even met another famous composer, Gioacchino Rossini.
Becoming a Successful Opera Composer
Morlacchi quickly became successful at writing operas. His first operas were written in 1807. One was a funny play called a farce, and the other was a comic opera.
His first really popular opera was Corradino, an opera seria (a serious opera). It was performed in Parma in 1808. This success led to him getting jobs to write operas for big theaters in Rome and Milan.
In 1810, a singer named Marietta Marcolini brought Morlacchi to Dresden. By 1811, he became the Kapellmeister, or chief music director, for the Italian Opera in Dresden.
Challenges in Dresden
Working in Dresden was not always easy for Morlacchi. German opera was already very popular there. Some critics saw Morlacchi and his Italian style of music as old-fashioned. He had to work hard to prove himself.
In 1815, Morlacchi wrote music for an opera called Il barbiere di Siviglia. The story was based on a play by Giuseppe Petrosellini. Just one year later, Rossini, his friend from school, presented his own famous version of Il barbiere di Siviglia. Rossini's version used a newer story by Cesare Sterbini.
A Hit Opera: Tebaldo e Isolina
One of Morlacchi's most successful works was Tebaldo e Isolina. It was first performed in Venice in 1822 at the La Fenice theater. A famous singer named Giovanni Battista Velluti sang the main role. He performed it so well that the opera became very popular.
Thanks to Velluti's amazing performance, Tebaldo e Isolina was performed in 40 different cities over the next ten years!
In 1829, an architect named Gottlob Friedrich Thormeyer painted a picture of Morlacchi. Francesco Morlacchi passed away in Innsbruck on October 28, 1841.
Other Works
Morlacchi also wrote an oratorio, which is a large musical work for voices and orchestra, usually based on a religious story. His oratorio was called La passione di Gesù Cristo (The Passion of Jesus Christ) and was written in 1812. It was one of the last times a composer used a specific story written by Metastasio in 1730.
Sometimes, people mistakenly think Francesco Morlacchi wrote a famous piece called "The Swiss Shepherd" (or "Il pastore svizzero"). However, that piece was actually written by a different Italian musician named Pietro Morlacchi (1828-1868), who played the flute.
See also
- Morlacchi
- In Spanish: Francesco Morlacchi para niños
