[Born at Aversa, near Naples, 1755. Died at Venice, 1801. Aged 47.]
A cobbler’s son and a baker’s apprentice. It was the duty of the lad to
fetch daily a batch of dough from the house of Aprili, the great singing
master of his time: and the musical sounds always ringing through the
house touched his spirit and elicited his genius. Aprili caught him
listening at the keyholes, and considerately sent him to a free musical
school in Naples. At the age of 19, Cimarosa quitted the Conservatorio,
and immediately afterwards wrote his first work--the music to a farce
called “Baroness Stramba.” From this time forward his compositions for
the theatre were incessant, and invariably successful. In 1787,
Catharine of Russia invited him to St. Petersburgh, whither he went; but
his health failing, he betook him, in 1792, to Vienna, and there entered
the service of the Emperor Leopold. In his 38th year, after he had
written 70 operas and dramatic works, he composed his masterpiece, “Il
Matrimonio Segreto.” The Emperor of Austria was so delighted with the
performance, that after supping the composer and the singers, he took
the whole of them back to the theatre, and made them sing the opera
through again. The operas of Mozart, then dying a few miles off, had
fallen at the same theatre upon cold and unfeeling ears. Few
compositions of Cimarosa are known at the present day, though his
innumerable productions were highly popular whilst he lived. His music
exhibits some originality and a prodigal flow and variety of ideas. His
scoring is peculiarly brilliant, and his comic powers were great.
[By Canova.]