Sinopoli, Giuseppe (1946–2001)

Italian conductor and composer. He was principal conductor of the Philharmonia Orchestra 1984–94, and conducted at Covent Garden and the Deutsche Oper, Berlin. He was popular with audiences for his dramatic handling of performances.

He studied medicine in Padua, then conducting in Vienna, with Hans Swarowsky. He founded the Bruno Maderna ensemble in 1975, for performances of modern music, and appeared with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra from 1979. He made his opera debut at Venice in 1978 with Aïda. In 1983 he made his US debut with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra, and led Manon Lescaut at Covent Garden, London. At his Bayreuth debut in 1985 he conducted Tannhäuser, and led Tosca at the New York Metropolitan Opera in the same year. He was principal conductor of the Philharmonia Orchestra 1984–94, music director of the Deutsche Oper Berlin in 1990, and at Dresden in 1993.

Works Opera Lou Salomé (1981).

Chamber and orchestral Sunyata for string quintet (1970), Opus daleth for orchestra (1971), piano concerto (1974), string quartet (1977).

Choral and voice Symphonie imaginaire for solo voices and chorus (1973), Requiem Hashshirim for unaccompanied chorus (1976).