Gaetano Braga

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Gaetano Braga, photography by Étienne Carjat

Gaetano Braga (born June 9, 1829 in Giulianova ( Teramo ), † November 21, 1907 in Milan ) was an Italian composer and cellist .

Life

He studied at the Conservatory in Naples with Salvatore Mercadante, among others . This was followed by a career both as a composer and as a cellist. Braga was considered one of the leading cellists of his time in the second half of the 19th century.

His eight operas became very popular because of their richness of melody and drama. Of his other compositions, the piece "La Serenata", also called "The Angel Song", became internationally known. It is a dialogue (comparable to Goethe's Erlkönig ) between a worried mother and a feverish daughter who hears angels' voices and finally follows them ("O mamma buona notte, io seguo il suon, io seguo il suon!"). The piece was u. a. mentioned in Anton Chekhov's short story The Black Monk .

Works

Operas

  • Alina ossia la spregiata (Leone Emanuele Bardare), Opera semiseria in 2 acts (1853 Naples)
  • Estella di San Germano (Achille de Lauzières), Dramma lirico in 3 acts (1857 Vienna)
  • Il ritratto commedia (Achille de Lauzières), Opera lirica in 2 acts (1858 Naples)
  • Margherita la mendicante (Francesco Maria Piave), Opera in 3 acts (1859 Paris)
  • Mormile (Francesco Maria Piave), Opera in 3 acts (1862 Milan)
  • Gli avventurieri (Antonio Ghislanzoni), opera in 3 acts (1867 Milan); Dedicated to Rossini
  • Reginella (Antonio Ghislanzoni), melodrama in 3 acts (1871 Lecco)
  • Caligola (Antonio Ghislanzoni), Opera in 3 acts (1873 Lisbon)

Concerts

  • 2 cello concerts
  • Fantasia for cello and orchestra

Chamber music

  • String quintet
  • String quartet
  • Souvenir du Rhin (Capriccio for cello and piano)
  • La Serenata (The Angel Song)
  • Santa Lucia (Bararole)

Web links

Commons : Gaetano Braga  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

literature

  • Andrea Sessa, Il melodramma italiano 1861–1900 , Firenze , Olschki 2003 , pp. 68-69. - ISBN 88-222-5213-6
  • Renato Badalì, Dizionario della musica italiana. La musica strumentale , Roma, Tascabili Economici Newton, 1996 - ISBN 88-8183-509-6
  • Carla Ortolani, Gaetano Braga , in Gente d'Abruzzo. Dizionario biografico , Castelli (Teramo), Andromeda editrice, vol. 2, pp. 31-36
  • Gianluca Sulli, Il salotto europeo di Gaetano Braga , in La romanza italiana da salotto, a cura di Francesco Sanvitale, EDT, Torino 2002, pp. 603-607 - ISBN 88-7063-615-1
personal data
SURNAME Braga, Gaetano
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Italian composer and cellist
DATE OF BIRTH June 9, 1829
PLACE OF BIRTH Giulianova ( Teramo )
DATE OF DEATH November 21, 1907
Place of death Milan