Feo, Francesco

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Feo, Francesco

Feo, Francesco, celebrated Italian composer and pedagogue; b. Naples, 1691; d. there, Jan. 18, 1761. He studied with Andrea Basso and Nicola Fago at the Cons.S. Maria della Pieta dei Turchini (1704–12), subsequently serving as maestro (with Ignazio Prota) at the Cons. S.Onofrio (1723–39) and as primo maestro at the Cons, dei Poveri di Gesu Cristo (1739–43). His most famous pupil was Nicolo Jommelli, who studied with him at the Cons. S. Onofrio. He composed over 150 works, including much sacred music.

Works

DRAMATIC Opera : L’amor tirannico, ossia Zenobia (Naples, Jan. 18, 1713); Laforza della virtu (Naples, Jan. 22, 1719); Teuzzone (Naples, Jan. 20, 1720); Siface, re di Numidia (Naples, Nov. 4, 1720); Ipermestra (Rome, Jan. 1728); Arianna (Turin, Carnival 1728); Tamase (Naples, 1729); Andromaca (Rome, Feb. 5, 1730); L’Issipile (Turin, 1733?); Arsace (Turin, Dec. 26, 1740). Intermezzos : Morano e Rosina (Naples, 1723), Don Chisciotte della Mancia (Rome, Carnival 1726); Coriando lo speciale (Rome, Carnival 1726); II vedovo (Naples, 1729). Serenatas : Oreste (Madrid, Jan. 20, 1738); Polinice (Madrid, June 19, 1738).

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire