Role

:

Composer

Country

:

Italy

Birth

:

March 2, 1815 in Adria, Italy

Death

:

March 20, 1871

Period

:

Romantic

Genre

:

Opera

 

 

Vocal

 

Antonio Buzzolla was an Italian composer and conductor who lived from 1815 to 1871. He was born in Adria, a town in the Veneto region of Italy, on March 12, 1815. Buzzolla was the son of a musician, and he began his musical education at a young age. He studied at the Conservatory of Venice, where he was a student of the composer and conductor Ferdinando Paer. Buzzolla's early career was focused on conducting. He served as the conductor of the orchestra at the Teatro La Fenice in Venice from 1837 to 1840. During this time, he also composed his first opera, La festa di Piedigrotta, which was performed in Naples in 1839. In 1840, Buzzolla left Venice to become the conductor of the orchestra at the Teatro San Carlo in Naples. Buzzolla's time in Naples was marked by a number of successes. He composed several operas that were well-received, including La sonnambula, which premiered in 1842, and Il diavolo a quattro, which premiered in 1845. He also conducted a number of important premieres, including Verdi's Ernani in 1844 and Donizetti's Maria di Rohan in 1843. In 1847, Buzzolla returned to Venice to become the conductor of the orchestra at the Teatro La Fenice. He remained in this position until 1853, when he left to become the conductor of the orchestra at the Teatro Regio in Turin. While in Turin, Buzzolla composed several operas, including La sposa di Corinto, which premiered in 1856. Buzzolla's most famous work is his Requiem Mass, which he composed in 1867. The Requiem was commissioned by the city of Venice to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the death of Gioachino Rossini. Buzzolla's Requiem was performed in the Basilica di San Marco in Venice on November 13, 1868, with a choir of 400 singers and an orchestra of 120 musicians. The performance was a great success, and the Requiem has since become one of Buzzolla's most frequently performed works. In addition to his work as a composer and conductor, Buzzolla was also a teacher. He taught at the Conservatory of Naples from 1840 to 1847, and at the Conservatory of Turin from 1853 to 1867. Among his students were the composers Amilcare Ponchielli and Carlo Pedrotti. Buzzolla died in Turin on August 22, 1871, at the age of 56. He was buried in the Cimitero Monumentale di Torino. Despite his relatively short life, Buzzolla left behind a significant body of work that includes operas, sacred music, and instrumental music. His music is characterized by its lyricism and its adherence to traditional forms and structures. Today, Buzzolla is remembered as one of the most important Italian composers of the mid-19th century.

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