Gabriele Adorno. A Genoese nobleman (ten), lover of Amelia Grimaldi, in Verdi Simon Boccanegra.
Gabrielli, Francesca. See FERRARESE, LA.
Gadski, Johanna (b Anklam, 15 June 1872; d Berlin, 22 Feb. 1932). German soprano. Studied Stettin with Schröder-Chaloupka. Début Berlin, Kroll, 1889 (in Lortzing Undine). Berlin, K, until 1894; New York, M, with Damrosch's Co., 1895, as Co. member 1900-17 (except 1904-6); London, CG, 18981901; Bayreuth 1899; Munich Fest. 1905, 1906; Salzburg 1906, 1910; Chicago 191011. Toured US 1929-31 in Wagner. Repertory incl. Pamina, Amelia, Aida, Valentine, Eva, Isolde, Brtinnhilde, Santuzza. A fine singer and actress, with a beautiful voice and a lyrical, bel canto style; highly popular in US until the First World War, when there was anti-German hostility to her and her husband. (R)
Gaetano (Kajetan) (b Warsaw, 1st half 18th cent., d Warsaw, c. 1793). Polish composer and violinist. From 1764 played in the royal orchestra in Warsaw, which he conducted 1779-93. Composed several operas, including óta szlafmyca (The Yellow Nightcap, 1783), one of the first operas to incorporate elements from Polish folk music. Les amours de Bastien und Bastienne ( 1788) uses the libretto which Mozart had set in an adapted form 20 years earlier.
Gagliano, Marco da (b Florence 1 May 1582; d Florence, 25 Feb. 1643). Italian composer. Maestro di cappella. to the Grand Duke of Tuscany from 1609, he was one of the founding fathers of opera. Dafne, first performed in Mantua in 1608, was an immediate success; even Peri judged it superior to his own earlier setting of the same libretto. Gagliano's preface to the score (pub. 1608) is one of the most important documents in the early history of opera; the instruction that an instrumental sinfonia should be played before the stage action is the earliest mention of the operatic overture.
Most of Gagliano's later operas are lost. However, Dafne, with its adumbration of the later split between arioso and recitative and
sure dramatic touch, is one of the most impressive monuments from the very earliest phase of operatic history.
Gailhard, Pierre (b Toulouse, 1 Aug. 1848; d Paris, 12 Oct. 1918). French bass and manager. Studied Toulouse, and Paris Cons. Début Paris, OC, 1867 (Falstaff in Thomas Le songe d'une nuit d'été). Paris, OC until 1870 and O 1871-84; London, CG, 1879-83, A cultured man with a warm, sonorous voice. Created roles in works by Mermet, Joncières, and Thomas; also sang Leporello, Osmin, Saint-Bris, and Gounod's and Boito's Mephistopheles, giving sharp, impressive characterizations in both comic and serious parts. In 1884 became joint manager of the Opéra, with first Ritt, then Bertrand; sole manager 1899-1906. He was responsible for many French prems. (including Otello, Lohengrin, Die Walküre, Siegfried, Tristan, Die Meistersinger), and for the high quality of their productions. (R)
Gál, Hans (b Brünn ( Brno), 5 Aug. 1890; d Edinburgh, 3 Oct. 1987). Austrian composer and musicologist. Studied Vienna with Mandyczewski. One of his first successes came with his opera Die heilige Ente (The Holy Duckling), widely performed in the 1920s. His idiom owes much to the Brahms tradition he absorbed from his teacher, something to neo-classicism, nothing to the Second Viennese School. Die heilige Ente is a Singspiel, eclectic, folk-like, and influenced by both Johann and Richard Strauss. He was also a stimulating writer and teacher.
Galeffi, Carlo (b Malamocco, 4 June 1882; d Rome, 22 Sept. 1961). Italian baritone. Studied Paris with Sbriglia, and Rome with Cotogni. Début Fermo 1907 ( Don Alfonso, La favorita). New York, M, 1910; Milan, S, regularly between 1913 and 1940; Chicago 1914, 1919-21. Created leading roles in Boito Nerone, Montemezzi L'amore dei tre re, and Mascagni Isabeau and Parisina. First Italian Amfortas, and also famous as Rigoletto, Nabucco, and Tell. Retired 1955. Possessed an unusually round and even tone, and an expressive legato line. (R)
Galilei, Vincenzo (b S Maria a Monte, prob.
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