Background
He was born in England in about 1710, to Italian parents.
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Thomas Pinto
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As a child he played the violin well, and aged 11 he could play the concertos of Arcangelo Corelli. Because of his noted ability, he was leading important concerts before he was twenty. He was able to play music at sight so well that he neglected practicing.
He became more ambitious when impressed by the success of Felice Giardini, an Italian violinist who came to England in 1750 and led the orchestra of Italian opera in London.
Pinto became leader when Giardini was unavailable. He was for a period leader of the orchestra of the Drury Lane theatre and at Vauxhall Gardens.
In 1769 he became joint owner, with the composer Samuel Arnold, of Marylebone Gardens, and he led the orchestra there. The business venture failed.
Pinto moved to Dublin where he led a theatre orchestra.
He died in Dublin in 1773. She had been a pupil and mistress of the composer Thomas Arne, and was a performer at Vauxhall Gardens. A grandson was the composer and pianist George Pinto.
