Francesco Morlacchi

Francesco Morlacchi (June 14 1784 in Perugia- October 28 1841 in Innsbruck) was an Italian composer of more than twenty operas. During the many years he spent as the royal Royal Kapellmeister in Dresden, he was instrumental in popularizing the Italian style of opera.

Morlacchi composed from a very young age, first studying with his uncle Giovanni Mazzetti and later with Luigi Caruso. He later studied at Loreto with Zingarelli. Finally, he ended up in Bologna at the school of Stanislao Mattei where he met Gioacchino Rossini. Morlacchi's first operatic works were written in 1807, and were a "farce" and a comic opera. His first truly effective theatre work was the "opera seria" "Corradino" (Parma, 1808), and lead to commissions from opera houses in Rome and Milan. In 1810 he was brought to Dresden by prominent contralto Marietta Marcolini, and in 1811 Morlacchi was made Kapellmeister of the Italian Opera in Dresden. While in Dresden, he had to work to establish himself in the eyes of critics. By this time, German opera was well established, and Morlacchi and his compositions were seen to represent the old order both of composers and the aristocracy. Morlacchi set "Il barbiere di Siviglia" in the very same year Rossini presented his "The Barber of Seville". Morlacchi's was to the older Giuseppe Petrosellini libretto, whereas Rossini's was to the newer libretto by Cesare Sterbini.

One of Morlacchi's most successful works was "Tebaldo e Isolina" (La Fenice, Venice 1822). Giovanni Battista Velluti premiered the work, and made the role his own. The opera was performed in 40 cities over the next ten years, largely thanks to Velluti's skillful performance.

References

Biancamaria Brumana. "Francesco Morlacchi", "Grove Music Online", ed. L. Macy (accessed September 5 2006), [http://www.grovemusic.com/ grovemusic.com] (subscription access).

Persondata
NAME=Morlacchi, Francesco
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION=Italian composer
DATE OF BIRTH=June 14 1784
PLACE OF BIRTH=Perugia
DATE OF DEATH=October 28 1841
PLACE OF DEATH=Innsbruck