Amilcare Ponchielli

Background

He was born in Paderno Fasolaro (now Paderno Ponchielli) near Cremona, then Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia, about August, 31, 1834. His father was a good amateur organist who gave young Amilcare his first lessons.

Education

He entered the Milan Conservatory in 1843 and received his diploma in 1854.

Career

Ponchielli was organist at San Ilario in Cremona from 1854 to 1856, when he became bandmaster of the Municipal Band at Piacenza. In 1881 he was appointed maestro di capella (musical director) of the Cathedral of Bergamo, and the next year he returned to the Milan Conservatory as professor of composition. There he taught the young composers Giacomo Puccini and Pietro Mascagni, influencing the latter in particular. Ponchielli's first opera, I Promessi Sposi, was produced in Cremona in 1856 and rewritten in 1872. The revision was an immediate success in Milan, and in the following year Ponchielli was commissioned to write two ballets, Le Due Gemelle and Clarina. His other nonoperatic works include a cantata for Donizetti's reburial at Bergamo (1875), a hymn in memory of Garibaldi (1882), and several sacred compositions. Ponchielli is remembered primarily, however, as a composer of operas. Although he wrote nine operas, La Gioconda is the only one still included in the standard repertory. La Gioconda was first produced at the Teatro alla Scala in Milan on Apr. 8, 1876. The revision, made in December of that year, is the version performed today. The libretto was written by "Tobio Gorria, " an anagram for Arrigo Boito, composer of Mefistofele and librettist for several Verdi operas. La Gioconda is based on Victor Hugo's Angelo, le tyran de Padoue. Set in 17th-century Venice, it is operatic drama in the grand style, encompassing love, hatred, and murder. Ponchielli's music has been called uneven and the plot criticized because the characters are at times less than believable. On the other hand, La Gioconda contains several memorable melodies and is regarded as a powerful portrayal of the deepest human emotions. There are six principals, and the title role is considered one of the most difficult soprano characterizations in opera. Two of the best-known moments in the work are Gioconda's "Suicidio" aria in the last act and the third-act ballet, "Dance of the Hours. "Ponchielli, though ranked with Verdi and Rossini by his contemporaries, is not as highly regarded at the present, being remembered principally as a one-work composer.

Achievements

• Although in his lifetime Ponchielli was very popular and influential, in introducing an enlarged orchestra and more complex orchestration, the only one of his operas regularly performed today is La Gioconda. It contains the great tenor romanza "Cielo e mar", a superb duet for tenor and baritone "Enzo Grimaldo", the soprano set-piece "Suicidio!", and the ballet music "The Dance of the Hours", known even to the non-musical from its use in Walt Disney's Fantasia in 1940, Allan Sherman's novelty song, "Hello Muddah, Hello Fadduh", and other popular works.

Works

More photos

• book

  • Amilcare Ponchielli: La Gioconda

    (Deborah Voigt, Elisabetta Fiorillo, Ewa Podles, Richard M...)

Connections

In 1874 he married soprano Teresina Brambilla. Together they had three children.

spose:

Teresina Brambilla

She was an Italian soprano who sang in the major opera houses of Europe in a career spanning 25 years.