Antonio Bazzini was an Italian violinist, composer, and teacher. As a composer, his most enduring work is his chamber music which has earned him a central place in the Italian instrumental renaissance of the 19th century. In 1868 he became president of the Società dei Concerti in Brescia. In 1873 he became composition professor at the Milan Conservatory, and later became the school's director in 1882.
Background
Antonio was born in Brescia on 11 March 1818 in Brescia, Lombardia, Italy. He came from an ancient Brescian family, mentioned in chronicles as early as the 1400s, but by the early nineteenth century, his father was in straitened circumstances that bordered on poverty. Bazzini’s godfather, Antonio Buccelleni, was in a position to provide both financially and culturally for young Bazzini.
Education
As a young boy, he was a pupil of Faustino Camisani. At 17 he was appointed organist of a church in his native town. The following year he met Paganini and became completely influenced by that master's art and style. Paganini encouraged Bazzini to begin his concert career that year and he quickly became one of the most highly regarded artists of his time.
Career
From 1841 to 1845 he lived in Germany, where he was much admired by Schumann both as a violinist and a composer, as well as by Mendelssohn (Bazzini gave the first private performance of his Violin Concerto[citation needed]). After a short stay in Denmark in 1845, Bazzini returned to Brescia to teach and compose. In 1846 he played in Naples and Palermo. In 1849–1850 he toured Spain and from 1852 to 1863 lived in Paris. He ended his concert career with a tour of the Netherlands in 1864.
Returning once more to Brescia, Bazzini devoted himself to composition.He composed an opera, Turanda, in 1867 and produced a number of dramatic cantatas, sacred works, concert overtures, and symphonic poems over the next two decades. In 1873 he became composition professor at the Milan Conservatory, and later became the school's director in 1882.