Ponchielli, Amilcare

Born Aug. 31, 1834, in Paderno Fasolaro, now Paderno Ponchielli, near Cremona; died Jan. 16, 1886, in Milan. Italian composer.

Ponchielli was first an organist and then a conductor in Cremona. In 1881 he became the choir director of the cathedral in Bergamo. Beginning in 1883 he was a professor at the Milan Conservatory, where P. Mascagni and G. Puccini were among his students. Ponchielli was known chiefly as a composer of operas. His La Gioconda (libretto by A. Boito, based on Hugo’s drama Angelo, Tyrant of Padua), first performed at La Scala in Milan in 1876, gained world fame. His other works included two ballets and the Garibaldi Hymn (1882).