Geminiano Giacomelli

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Geminiano Giacomelli, caricature by Pier Leone Ghezzi

Geminiano Giacomelli (also Jacomelli ; born May 28, 1692 in Colorno , † January 25, 1740 in Loreto ) was an Italian opera composer and singing teacher.

Life

Giacomelli's parents were Giuseppe and Maria Tej. He studied singing, counterpoint and piano with Giovanni Maria Capelli , conductor of the cathedral and court composer in Parma. Occasional evidence that he studied with Alessandro Scarlatti in 1724 and then in the service of Charles VI. in Vienna are probably wrong. In 1718 he married Francesca Marchi in Piacenza, with whom he had nine children.

From March 1, 1719 to February 1727, Giacomelli was Kapellmeister at the court of Parma and from March 27, 1719 also at the Church of Madonna della Steccata. He shared his position with his teacher Capelli.

On January 3, 1727, at the express request of Duke Francesco Farnese , he was appointed conductor of San Giovanni in Piacenza for life, where he received an annual salary of 2000 lire piacentine. In addition, he was given the privilege of being absent at will, provided that he arranged for a substitute and provided compositions. During this time he wrote a number of operas for the most important theaters in Italy, but did not neglect his duties at the ducal court. In 1728 he wrote the opera Scipione in Cartagine nuova for the inauguration ("il solenne ingresso") of the Princess Enrichetta Maria d'Este and in 1729 Lucio Papirio dittatore on the occasion of a visit by the Duke of Modena Rinaldo d'Este .

When the chapel of San Giovanni was abandoned for financial reasons in 1732, Giacomelli returned to Parma and resumed his two positions at the court and at the church of Madonna della Steccata until 1737. In 1737 he went to Graz, where he directed the performances of his opera Cesare in Egitto . Finally, on November 24, 1738, he was appointed as successor to Tommaso Redi as Kapellmeister of the Santa Casa in Loreto, where he worked until his death in 1740.

Giacomelli created around twenty operas, pasticci and intermezzi for various Italian cities. His first opera, Ipermestra , was performed in 1724 at the Teatro San Giovanni Crisostomo in Venice. Cesare was most successful in Egitto from 1735, which, after its world premiere in Milan, was also performed in Venice, Florence, Graz and Verona. In addition, two oratorios have been preserved. Most of his numerous sacred compositions, however, are lost.

Effect and style

He was highly valued by his contemporaries both as an opera composer and as a singing teacher. Benedetto Marcello published a letter of recommendation from him dated April 29, 1726 in the seventh volume of his Estro poetico-armonico .

Giacomelli managed to optimally adapt his works to the abilities of the respective singers. At the same time he had a keen sense for the needs of the theater and a simple traditional tonal language that made him very popular. His melodies appear soft, spontaneous and cantable. They are decorated with vocalises and coloratura, in keeping with contemporary tastes. The harmony is simple, but enlivened by frequent modulations.

Many of Giacomelli's arias were processed into pasticci. Antonio Vivaldi used two arias from Alessandro Severo in Dorilla in Tempe, performed in Venice in 1726, and three arias in Tamerlano . Georg Friedrich Handel arranged large parts of Lucio Papirio dittatore for his pasticcio of the same name , which was performed in London in 1732. One of the arias Farinelli sang daily for the Spanish King Philip V for nine years included at least one by Giacomelli: “Quell'usignolo” from Merope. Charles Burney noted in his General History of Music of 1789 that Giacomelli had a keen imagination and influenced the tastes of later times significantly:

"He was the scholar of Capelli, and had a lively imagination that furnished him with agreeable flights, which, from their novelty, afforded so much pleasure, that they contributed considerably to propagate and establish the taste of subsequent times."

- Charles Burney : A General History of Music: From the Earliest Ages to the Present Period.

Works

Ipermestra - title page of the libretto, Venice 1724
Lucio Papirio dittatore - Title page of the libretto, Parma 1729
Cesare in Egitto - title page of the libretto, Milan 1735
  • Ipermestra, dramma per musica in three acts; Libretto: Antonio Salvi ; February 5, 1724, Venice, Teatro San Giovanni Crisostomo ; in the same year also in Parma, Teatro Ducale; 1733 Pesaro, Teatro del Sole
  • Zidiana, dramma in three acts; Libretto: Apostolo Zeno ; 28 August 1728, Milan, Teatro Ducale
  • Gianguir, dramma per musica in three acts; Libretto: Apostolo Zeno; December 27, 1728, Venice, Teatro San Cassiano ; 1732, Verona, Teatro Filarmonico ; around February 20, 1748, Venice, Palazzo Labia
  • Scipione in Cartagine nuova, dramma per musica in three acts; Libretto: Carlo Innocenzo Frugoni ; 1728, Parma; Spring 1730, Piacenza, Teatro Ducale
  • Lucio Papirio dittatore , dramma per musica in three acts; Libretto: Apostolo Zeno and Carlo Innocenzo Frugoni; Spring 1729, Parma, Teatro Ducale ; Summer 1732, Cremsier; Carnival 1734, Verona, Teatro Filarmonico; Edited as pasticcioby Georg Friedrich Händel in 1732(→ Lucio Papirio dittatore )
  • Astianatte, dramma per musica in three acts (only first act by Giacomelli, further music by Luca Antonio Predieri ); Libretto: Antonio Salvi; Autumn 1729, Alessandria, Teatro Solerio
  • Semiramide riconosciuta , dramma per musica in three acts; Libretto: Pietro Metastasio ; January 19, 1730, Milan, Teatro Ducale; Summer 1732, Rimini, Teatro Arcadico
  • Egloga amebea, intermezzo in one act; 1730 ?, Vienna
  • Annibale, dramma per musica in three acts; Libretto: Filippo Vanstryp ; January 22, 1731, Rome, Teatro Capranica; Carnival 1734, Fabriano (only arias preserved)
  • Epaminonda, dramma per musica in three acts; Libretto: Domenico Lalli ; December 26th 1731, Venice, Teatro San Giovanni Crisostomo
  • Rosbale, dramma per musica in three acts; Libretto: Claudio Nicola Stampa ; February 10, 1732, Rome, Teatro Argentina; Spring 1736, Livorno, Teatro San Sebastiano
  • Alessandro Severo , dramma per musica in three acts; Libretto: Apostolo Zeno; Autumn 1732, Piacenza, Teatro Ducale
  • Adriano in Siria , dramma per musica in three acts; Libretto: Pietro Metastasio; January 30th 1733, Venice, Teatro San Giovanni Crisostomo
  • Il Tigrane, dramma per musica in three acts; Libretto: Pietro Antonio Bernardoni ; April 1733, Piacenza, Teatro Ducale
  • La caccia in Etolia or The Hunt in Jetolien, "Musical Intermediate Game" (Pasticcio); April 8, 1733, Vienna, Theater am Kärntnertor
  • Merope, dramma per musica in three acts; Libretto: Apostolo Zeno (according to Grove Music Online with Domenico Lalli); February 20, 1734, Venice, Teatro San Giovanni Crisostomo
  • Cesare in Egitto, dramma per musica in three acts; Libretto: Giacomo Francesco Bussani; Carnival 1735, Milan, Teatro Regio Ducale; November 24, 1735, Venice, Teatro San Giovanni Crisostomo; 26.? December 1735, Florence, Teatro della Pergola ; 1737, Graz; Carnival 1741, Verona, Teatro Filarmonico
  • Nitocri, regina d'Egitto, dramma per musica in three acts; Libretto: Apostolo Zeno; 23 January 1736 Rome, Teatro Tordinona
  • Arsace, dramma per musica in three acts; Libretto: Antonio Salvi and Giovanni Boldini ; Autumn 1736, Pisa (Prato?), Teatro Pubblico; December 26, 1736, Venice, Teatro San Cassiano; Autumn 1737, Graz, Theater am Tummelplatz; 1739 and 1742, Vienna, Theater am Kärntnertor
  • Demetrio , dramma per musica in three acts; Libretto: Pietro Metastasio; Carnival 1737, Turin, Teatro Regio
  • La costanza vincitrice in amore, dramma per musica in three acts (pasticcio, music in the 1st and 2nd act by Giacomelli); Libretto: Giuseppe Gnocchi ; January 1738, Parma, Teatro Ducale
  • Achille in Aulide, dramma per musica in three acts; 3rd February 1739, Rome, Teatro Argentina
  • Catone in Utica , dramma per musica in three acts (pasticcio); Libretto: Pietro Metastasio; 1744 and 1749 (composed between 1730 and 1736, performed posthumously), Vienna

Spiritual works

  • La conversione di Santa Margherita da Cortona, oratorio
  • Santa Giuliana Falconieri, oratorio; Libretto: Gregorio Giacomo Terribilini; 1740, Genoa, Oratorio dei Filippini; in collaboration with Rolandi
  • Litany in F major
  • Litany in D major
  • Magnificat in F major for four voices; also attributed to Francesco Durante
  • A fair
  • Kyrie
  • Quam admirabile, motet for two tenors and basso continuo
  • Egredimini, motet
  • Domine noster for three male voices, as admirabile Quam published
  • Gloria sicut erat, motet

Arias, romances, cantatas

  • Stando a canto
  • Cara l'averso fato for soprano and quartet
  • Mio cor non sospirar
  • Per te perdo il mio
  • Que 'begli tatting
  • Sposa non mi conosci; Recorded in Merope in 1734 and in Vivaldi's Tamerlano / Bajazet in 1735
  • Per te perdo
  • L'Amore artigiano, "romance"
  • La violetta, "romance"
  • Che posso you
  • Dove son le mie ritorte
  • Crudo ciel
  • Twelve arias with instruments

Instrumental works

  • Sinfonia for two violins, two oboes, two horns, viola and basso continuo
  • Aria for two violins and basso continuo

Web links

Commons : Geminiano Giacomelli  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Digital copies

  1. ^ Ipermestra. Libretto (Italian), Venice 1724. Digitized at Google Books .
  2. ↑ Zidiana. Libretto (Italian), Milan 1728. Digitized at Google Books .
  3. ↑ Gianguir. Libretto (Italian), Venice 1729. Digitized at Google Books .
  4. ^ Scipione in Cartagine nuova. Libretto (Italian), Piacenza 1730. Digitized at Google Books .
  5. ↑ Lucio Papirio dittatore. Libretto (Italian), Parma 1729. Digitized from the Museo internazionale e biblioteca della musica di Bologna .
  6. ↑ Semiramide riconosciuta. Libretto (Italian), Milan 1730. Digitized in the Corago information system of the University of Bologna .
  7. ↑ Annibale. Libretto (Italian), Rome 1731. Digitized version of the Museo internazionale e biblioteca della musica di Bologna .
  8. ↑ Epaminonda. Libretto (Italian), Venice 1732. Digitized version of the Museo internazionale e biblioteca della musica di Bologna .
  9. ↑ Rosbale. Libretto (Italian), Rome 1732. Digitized version of the Museo internazionale e biblioteca della musica di Bologna .
  10. ↑ Alessandro Severo. Libretto (Italian), Parma 1732. Digitized from the Museo internazionale e biblioteca della musica di Bologna .
  11. ^ Adriano in Siria. Libretto (Italian), Venice 1733. Digitized at Google Books .
  12. ↑ Il Tigrane. Libretto (Italian), Parma 1733. Digitized in the Corago information system of the University of Bologna .
  13. ↑ Merope. Libretto (Italian), Venice 1734. Digitized version of the Museo internazionale e biblioteca della musica di Bologna .
  14. ↑ Cesare in Egitto. Libretto (Italian), Milan 1735. Digitized version of the Museo internazionale e biblioteca della musica di Bologna .
  15. ↑ Nitocri, regina d'Egitto. Libretto (Italian), Rome 1736. Digitized version of the Museo internazionale e biblioteca della musica di Bologna .
  16. ↑ Arsace. Libretto (Italian), Venice 1737. Digitized in the Corago information system of the University of Bologna .
  17. ↑ Demetrio. Libretto (Italian), Turin 1737. Digitized in the Corago information system of the University of Bologna .
  18. ↑ Achille in Aulide. Libretto (Italian), Rome 1739. Digitized version of the Museo internazionale e biblioteca della musica di Bologna .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Geminiano Giacomelli on haendel.it (Italian)
  2. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j Federico Colonia:  Giacomelli, Geminiano. In: Mario Caravale (ed.): Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani (DBI). Volume 54:  Ghiselli-Gimma. Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana, Rome 2000.
  3. ↑ a b c d e f g Gordana Lazarevich:  Giacomelli, Geminiano. In: Grove Music Online (English; subscription required).
  4. ^ A b Luigi Ferdinando Tagliavini:  Jacomelli, Geminiano. In: Friedrich Blume (Hrsg.): The music in past and present (MGG). First edition, Volume 6 (Head - Jenny). Bärenreiter / Metzler, Kassel et al. 1957, DNB 550439609 , Sp. 1633–1634 (= Digital Library Volume 60, pp. 37905–37908).
  5. ^ Benedetto Marcello: Estro poetico-armonico. Volume 7, introduction with letter of recommendation from Giacomelli on page 4 (PDF, page 10). Digitized on petrucci.mus.auth.gr.
  6. ^ George Jellinek: History Through the Opera Glass. Pro / Am Music Resources, New York 1994, ISBN 0-912483-90-3 ( limited preview on Google Books ).
  7. ^ Charles Burney: A General History of Music: From the Earliest Ages to the Present Period. Volume 4, 1789, p. 537 ( online at Google Books )
personal data
SURNAME Giacomelli, Geminiano
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Jacomelli, Geminiano
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Italian opera composer and singing teacher
DATE OF BIRTH May 28, 1692
PLACE OF BIRTH Colorno
DATE OF DEATH January 25, 1740
Place of death Loreto