Galuppi, Baldassare (1706–1785)

Italian composer. His serious operas met with indifferent success, but his comic operas are notable, especially those on libretti by Carlo Goldoni, the most famous being Il filosofo di campagna (1754).

Galuppi was born on the island of Burano, near Venice. He studied with his father and later, after the failure of his first opera in 1722, with Antonio Lotti in Venice. His operatic career proper began in 1728, after which he composed a vast quantity of works. He visited London, England, 1741–43, and produced several operas there. He was appointed second maestro di cappella at St Mark's, Venice, in 1748, and first maestro and director of the Ospitale degl'Incurabili in 1762. He was director of Catherine the Great's chapel at St Petersburg, Russia, 1765–68, writing new operas and Russian sacred music. Thereafter he composed few operas and devoted himself chiefly to oratorios for the Incurabili.

Works Opera Alessandro nell' Indie (1738), L'Olympiade, L'Arcadia in Brenta (1749), Il conte Caramella, Il mondo della luna (1750), Il mondo alla roversa, La calamità de cuori, Il filosofo di campagna (1754), Le nozze (1755), L'amante di tutte, Le tre amanti ridicoli, Il marchese Villano (1762), Ifigenia in Tauride (1768), and others (over 90 in all).

Other 27 oratorios; church music; instrumental music.