Luigi Marchesi (Italian pronunciation: [luˈiːdʒi marˈkeːzi]; 8 August 1754 – 14 December 1829) was an Italian castrato singer, one of the most prominent and charismatic to appear in Europe during the second half of the eighteenth century. His singing was praised by the likes of Mozart and Napoleon.
Luigi Marchesi in retirement
Biography
Luigi Ludovico Marchesi was born in Milan. He joined the Milan Cathedral choir in 1765 and made his operatic debut in Rome in 1773 at the Teatro delle Dame, cast as a female character,[1] in Marcello da Capua's comic opera La contessina.[2] For several years, Marchesi appeared either in minor roles or minor operatic centers, but he found a valuable ally in the Czech composer Josef Mysliveček after he appeared in the latter's opera Ezio and oratorioIsacco figura del redentore in Munich early in the year 1777.[3] Marchesi's singing in both productions was considered to be extraordinary. In a letter written by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to his father from Munich on 11 October 1777, it is mentioned that Mysliveček bragged of his influence with the management of the Teatro San Carlo in Naples, the most prestigious venue for the performance of Italian serious opera in Europe: he apparently had the power to recommend the engagement of singers who were to be featured in productions planned for the 1778–79 operatic season there. Marchesi was one of the singers that Mysliveček recommended. His first appearances in Naples were as successful as those in Munich, and they permanently established him as one of the most talented vocal artists in Italy. In all, Mysliveček created five operatic roles for Marchesi before his premature death in 1781.[4] His performance of Giuseppe Sarti's rondò "Mia speranza io pur vorrei" at La Scala in 1780–81 caused a sensation.[5] After Marchesi's triumphs throughout Italy in the late 1770s and early 1780s, he ventured all the way to Vienna, St. Petersburg, and London, where he created a tremendous sensation and was proclaimed to be the greatest singer of his time. In London he was billed as Virtuoso di Camera to his Sicilian Majesty. The Earl of Mount Edgcumbe described Marchesi's impression at London as following:
Marchesi was at this time (1788) a very well-looking young man, of good figure, and graceful deportment. His acting was spirited and expressive: his vocal powers were very great, his voice of extensive compass, but a little inclined to be thick. His execution was very considerable, and he was rather too fond of displaying it; nor was his cantabile singing equal to his bravura. In recitative, and scenes of energy and passion, he was incomparable, and had he been less lavish of ornaments, which were not always appropriate, and possessed a more pure and simple taste, his performance would have been faultless: it was always striking, animated and effective. He chose for his début Sarti's beautiful opera of Giulio Sabino, in which all the songs of the principal character, and they are many and various, are of the very finest description....
He was received with rapturous applause.
In 1796 Marchesi refused to sing for Napoleon when he entered the city of Milan. For this Marchesi was honored as a national hero by the public, as reported by Vernon Lee:
The frivolous part of society chatted and danced, and adored.... the singer Marchesi whom Alfieri called upon to buckle on his helmet, and march out against the French, as the only remaining Italian who dared to resist the 'Corsican Gallis' invader, although only in the matter of song.
Luigi Marchesi
Marchesi's last major appearance was in Simon Mayr's Ginevra di Scozia for the inauguration of the Teatro Nuovo in Trieste (1801). He continued to appear in public for a few more years, until 1806, when he retired for good and moved to his villa at Inzago, where he died on 14 December 1829. After his retirement Marchesi did not go into obscurity; once in a while, when in good health, he used to arrange a couple of private concerts; some of them were dedicated to charity, particularly for poor orphaned children.
As an artist Marchesi was certainly one of the greatest singers of his time, and he was also a composer. In London he published his own volume set of Ariette Italiane, and also a handful of solfeggi. He maintained a collaboration similar to that with Josef Mysliveček later in life with Angelo Tarchi. Perhaps his most important roles in the later part of his career were Megacle in Domenico Cimarosa's L'Olimpiade and Lovinski in Simon Mayr's La Lodoiska. Serious opera was the natural realm for his voice type, and he rarely sang comic roles after his early appearances in Rome.
In person Marchesi might have been the handsomest castrato of all time; during his London engagement in the 1790s, Maria Cosway deserted her husband and children and followed the singer around Europe for several years. Also, it is said he was adored by the whole female population of Rome. At the same time, however, Marchesi became famous for his turbulent temperament and notorious stipulations. He often insisted on making his entrance on the stage descending a hill on horseback wearing a helmet with multi-coloured plumes at least a yard high, saying "Where am I?". Otherwise, he engaged in rivalry competitions that once nearly cost him life; the fanatic supporters of the soprano Luisa Todi, his bitter rival, attempted to poison him in 1791.
Operatic Roles to 1800
Contessina Elmira in La contessina by Marcello di Capua (Rome, 1773)
Lauso in Lauso e Lidia by Simon Mayr (Venice, 1798)
Mexicow in Carolina e Mexicow by Gaetano Rossi (Venice, 1798)
Tito in Bruto by Giuseppe Nicolini (Genoa, 1799)
Idante in Idante by Marcos Portugal (Milan, 1800)[6]
References
Notes
^Until the accession of Pius VII as pope in 1800, no females were permitted to appear in public operatic productions in Rome.
^There is no documentation to support reports that Marchesi appeared in a production of Pergolesi's opera La Serva Padrona in Rome in 1774.
^Mysliveček's intervention in the course of Marchesi's career is documented in Daniel E. Freeman, Josef Mysliveček, "Il Boemo" (Sterling Heights, Mich.: Harmonie Park Press, 2009).
^A detailed comparison of Mysliveček's popular aria "Se cerca, se dice" (first performed by Marchesi in the composer's L'Olimpiade of 1778) with settings by other 18th-century composers is provided in Daniel E. Freeman, "Mysliveček's Setting of the Aria 'Se cerca, se dice' from Metastasio's L'Olimpiade," in Il ciel non soffre inganni: Attorno al Demetrio di Mysliveček, 'Il Boemo', edited by Mariateresa Dellaborra (Lucca: Libreria Musicale Italiana, 2011), 113–36. Besides the Munich Ezio of 1777, the other operas that Mysliveček used to create roles for Marchesi in this period were La Calliroe (Naples, 1779), La Circe (Venice, 1779), and Armida (Milan, 1780).
^John A. Rice, "Sense, Sensibility, and Opera Seria: An Epistolary Debate"
Heriot, Angus (1956), The Castrati in Opera, London.
Sadie, Stanley (ed.) 1998, The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians.
Sartori, Claudio (1992–94), I libretti italiani a stampa dalle origini al 1800. Cuneo.
March 11, 2023
luigi, marchesi, italian, artist, same, name, painter, royal, italian, army, officer, same, name, soldier, italian, pronunciation, luˈiːdʒi, marˈkeːzi, august, 1754, december, 1829, italian, castrato, singer, most, prominent, charismatic, appear, europe, durin. For the Italian artist of the same name see Luigi Marchesi painter For the Royal Italian Army officer of the same name see Luigi Marchesi soldier Luigi Marchesi Italian pronunciation luˈiːdʒi marˈkeːzi 8 August 1754 14 December 1829 was an Italian castrato singer one of the most prominent and charismatic to appear in Europe during the second half of the eighteenth century His singing was praised by the likes of Mozart and Napoleon Luigi Marchesi in retirementBiography EditLuigi Ludovico Marchesi was born in Milan He joined the Milan Cathedral choir in 1765 and made his operatic debut in Rome in 1773 at the Teatro delle Dame cast as a female character 1 in Marcello da Capua s comic opera La contessina 2 For several years Marchesi appeared either in minor roles or minor operatic centers but he found a valuable ally in the Czech composer Josef Myslivecek after he appeared in the latter s opera Ezio and oratorio Isacco figura del redentore in Munich early in the year 1777 3 Marchesi s singing in both productions was considered to be extraordinary In a letter written by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to his father from Munich on 11 October 1777 it is mentioned that Myslivecek bragged of his influence with the management of the Teatro San Carlo in Naples the most prestigious venue for the performance of Italian serious opera in Europe he apparently had the power to recommend the engagement of singers who were to be featured in productions planned for the 1778 79 operatic season there Marchesi was one of the singers that Myslivecek recommended His first appearances in Naples were as successful as those in Munich and they permanently established him as one of the most talented vocal artists in Italy In all Myslivecek created five operatic roles for Marchesi before his premature death in 1781 4 His performance of Giuseppe Sarti s rondo Mia speranza io pur vorrei at La Scala in 1780 81 caused a sensation 5 After Marchesi s triumphs throughout Italy in the late 1770s and early 1780s he ventured all the way to Vienna St Petersburg and London where he created a tremendous sensation and was proclaimed to be the greatest singer of his time In London he was billed as Virtuoso di Camera to his Sicilian Majesty The Earl of Mount Edgcumbe described Marchesi s impression at London as following Marchesi was at this time 1788 a very well looking young man of good figure and graceful deportment His acting was spirited and expressive his vocal powers were very great his voice of extensive compass but a little inclined to be thick His execution was very considerable and he was rather too fond of displaying it nor was his cantabile singing equal to his bravura In recitative and scenes of energy and passion he was incomparable and had he been less lavish of ornaments which were not always appropriate and possessed a more pure and simple taste his performance would have been faultless it was always striking animated and effective He chose for his debut Sarti s beautiful opera of Giulio Sabino in which all the songs of the principal character and they are many and various are of the very finest description He was received with rapturous applause In 1796 Marchesi refused to sing for Napoleon when he entered the city of Milan For this Marchesi was honored as a national hero by the public as reported by Vernon Lee The frivolous part of society chatted and danced and adored the singer Marchesi whom Alfieri called upon to buckle on his helmet and march out against the French as the only remaining Italian who dared to resist the Corsican Gallis invader although only in the matter of song Luigi Marchesi Marchesi s last major appearance was in Simon Mayr s Ginevra di Scozia for the inauguration of the Teatro Nuovo in Trieste 1801 He continued to appear in public for a few more years until 1806 when he retired for good and moved to his villa at Inzago where he died on 14 December 1829 After his retirement Marchesi did not go into obscurity once in a while when in good health he used to arrange a couple of private concerts some of them were dedicated to charity particularly for poor orphaned children As an artist Marchesi was certainly one of the greatest singers of his time and he was also a composer In London he published his own volume set of Ariette Italiane and also a handful of solfeggi He maintained a collaboration similar to that with Josef Myslivecek later in life with Angelo Tarchi Perhaps his most important roles in the later part of his career were Megacle in Domenico Cimarosa s L Olimpiade and Lovinski in Simon Mayr s La Lodoiska Serious opera was the natural realm for his voice type and he rarely sang comic roles after his early appearances in Rome In person Marchesi might have been the handsomest castrato of all time during his London engagement in the 1790s Maria Cosway deserted her husband and children and followed the singer around Europe for several years Also it is said he was adored by the whole female population of Rome At the same time however Marchesi became famous for his turbulent temperament and notorious stipulations He often insisted on making his entrance on the stage descending a hill on horseback wearing a helmet with multi coloured plumes at least a yard high saying Where am I Otherwise he engaged in rivalry competitions that once nearly cost him life the fanatic supporters of the soprano Luisa Todi his bitter rival attempted to poison him in 1791 Operatic Roles to 1800 EditContessina Elmira in La contessina by Marcello di Capua Rome 1773 Cecchina in La buona figliola by Niccolo Piccinni Rome 1774 Marchesa Violante in La finta giardiniera by Pasquale Anfossi Rome 1774 Gandarte in Alessandro nell Indie by Carlo Monza Milan 1775 Evandro in Medonte re di Epiro by Luigi Alessandri Milan 1775 Olinto in Demetrio by Pietro Guglielmi Venice 1775 Tarquinio in Il trionfo di Clelia Munich 1776 Farnaspe in Adriano in Siria by Pasquale Anfossi Padua 1777 Ezio in Ezio by Josef Myslivecek Munich 1777 Tarsile in La Calliroe by Josef Myslivecek Naples 1778 Aminta in Il re pastore by Ignazio Platania Naples 1778 Megacle in L Olimpiade by Josef Myslivecek Naples 1778 Achille in Ifigenia in Aulide by Vicente Martin y Soler Naples 1779 Ulisse in La Circe by Josef Myslivecek Venice 1779 Achille in Achille in Sciro by Giuseppe Sarti Florence 1779 Castore in Castore e Polluce by Francesco Bianchi Florence 1779 Rinaldo in Armida by Josef Myslivecek Milan 1780 Timante in Demofoonte Pisa 1780 Linceo in L Ipermestra by Vicente Martin y Soler Naples 1780 Rinaldo in Armida abbandonata by Niccolo Jommelli Naples 1780 Amore in Amore e Psiche by Joseph Schuster Naples 1780 Arbace in Arbace by Francesco Bianchi Naples 1781 Timante in Demofoonte Genoa 1781 Adone in Venere e Adone by Francesco Bianchi Florence 1781 Giulio Sabino in Giulio Sabino by Giuseppe Sarti Florence 1781 Vienna 1785 London 1788 Ezio in Ezio by Felice Alessandri Milan Alessandria and Lucca 1782 Florence 1783 Megacle in L Olimpiade by Francesco Bianchi Milan 1782 Ciro in Il trionfo della pace by Francesco Bianchi Turin 1782 Timante in Demofoonte Lucca 1782 Arbace in Artaserse by Giacomo Rust Rome 1783 Quinto Fabio in Quinto Fabio by Luigi Cherubini Rome 1783 Timante in Demofoonte by Felice Alessandri Padua 1783 Arsace in Medonte re di Epiro by Giuseppe Sarti Senigallia 1783 Piramo in Piramo e Tisbe by Giovanni Battista Borghi Florence 1783 Aspard in Aspard by Francesco Bianchi Rome 1784 Megacle in L Olimpiade by Giuseppe Sarti Rome 1784 Poro in Alessandro nell Indie by Luigi Cherubini Mantua 1784 Rinaldo in Armida e Rinaldo by Giuseppe Sarti St Petersburg 1786 Castore in Castore e Polluce by Giuseppe Sarti St Petersburg 1786 Megacle in L Olimpiade by Domenico Cimarosa Vicenza and Lucca 1784 London and Milan 1788 Venice 1790 Livorno 1791 Modena 1795 Achille in Achille in Sciro by Gaetano Pugnani Turin 1785 Arbace in Artaserse Turin 1785 Arminio in Arminio by Angelo Tarchi Mantua 1785 Castore in Castore e Polluce by Giuseppe Sarti St Petersburg 1786 Ramiro in Il conte di Saldagna by Angelo Tarchi Milan 1787 Timante in Demofoonte by Gaetano Pugnani Turin 1788 Achille in Ifigenia in Aulide by Luigi Cherubini Turin and Milan 1788 London 1789 Gualtieri in Il disertore by Angelo Tarchi London 1789 Siena 1791 Vicenza 1794 Genoa 1799 Porus in La generosita d Alessandro by Angelo Tarchi London 1789 Pyrrhus in Andromaca by Sebastiano Nasolini London 1790 Timante in L usurpator innocente by Vincenzo Federici London 1790 Giulio Sabino in Giulio Sabino by Angelo Tarchi Turin 1790 Megacle in L Olimpiade by Vincenzo Federici Turin 1790 Medoro in Angelica e Medoro by Ferdinando Bertoni Venice 1791 Ercole in L apoteosi d Ercole by Angelo Tarchi Venice 1791 Timante in Demofoonte Venice and Livorno 1791 Poro in Alessandro nell Indie by Angelo Tarchi Livorno 1791 Learco in Adrasto re d Egitto by Angelo Tarchi Milan 1792 Pirro in Pirro re di Epiro by Niccolo Antonio Zingarelli Milan 1792 Venice and Bergamo 1793 Vicenza 1794 Venice 1795 Faenza 1796 Livorno 1798 Ezio in Ezio by Angelo Tarchi Vicenza 1792 Arbace in Artaserse by Niccolo Antonio Zingarelli Milan 1794 Timante in Demofoonte by Marcos Portugal Milan 1794 Achille in Achille in Sciro by Marcello Bernardini Venice 1794 Ramiro in Il conte di Saldagna by Niccolo Antonio Zingarelli Venice and Reggio Emilia 1795 Venice and Livorno 1798 Achille in Ifigenia in Aulide by Niccolo Antonio Zingarelli Venice 1795 Arbace in Artaserse by Giuseppe Nicolini Venice 1795 Timante in Demofoonte Venice 1795 Lovinski in La Lodoiska by Simon Mayr Venice Faenza and Senigallia 1796 Venice and Genoa 1797 Livorno 1798 Genoa 1799 Milan 1800 Lovinski in a pasticcio of La Lodoiska Lisbon 1796 Lauso in Lauso e Lidia by Simon Mayr Venice 1798 Mexicow in Carolina e Mexicow by Gaetano Rossi Venice 1798 Tito in Bruto by Giuseppe Nicolini Genoa 1799 Idante in Idante by Marcos Portugal Milan 1800 6 References EditNotes Until the accession of Pius VII as pope in 1800 no females were permitted to appear in public operatic productions in Rome There is no documentation to support reports that Marchesi appeared in a production of Pergolesi s opera La Serva Padrona in Rome in 1774 Myslivecek s intervention in the course of Marchesi s career is documented in Daniel E Freeman Josef Myslivecek Il Boemo Sterling Heights Mich Harmonie Park Press 2009 A detailed comparison of Myslivecek s popular aria Se cerca se dice first performed by Marchesi in the composer s L Olimpiade of 1778 with settings by other 18th century composers is provided in Daniel E Freeman Myslivecek s Setting of the Aria Se cerca se dice from Metastasio s L Olimpiade in Il ciel non soffre inganni Attorno al Demetrio di Myslivecek Il Boemo edited by Mariateresa Dellaborra Lucca Libreria Musicale Italiana 2011 113 36 Besides the Munich Ezio of 1777 the other operas that Myslivecek used to create roles for Marchesi in this period were La Calliroe Naples 1779 La Circe Venice 1779 and Armida Milan 1780 John A Rice Sense Sensibility and Opera Seria An Epistolary Debate Source of roles Sartori 1992 94 p Sources Heriot Angus 1956 The Castrati in Opera London Sadie Stanley ed 1998 The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians Sartori Claudio 1992 94 I libretti italiani a stampa dalle origini al 1800 Cuneo Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Luigi Marchesi amp oldid 1133799338, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
