SALIERI, ANTONIO, a celebrated composer, was born at Legnano, in the state of Venice, on 19th August 1750. In his boyhood he was taught the violin by his elder brother, a good pupil of Tartini, and the harpsichord by Simoni, organist of the cathedral of Legnano. When fifteen years old he lost his father, and repaired to Venice, where one of the Mocenigo family patronised him. He received lessons in composition from Pescetti of St. Mark's cathedral, and lessons in singing from Pacini, one of the chapel tenors. Gassmann, master of the imperial chapel at
Vienna, came at that time to Venice, and accepted Salieri as a pupil at the request of Giovanni Mocenigo. On 15th June 1766 Salieri followed Gassmann to Vienna. Gassmann treated him with great kindness and generosity, benefits which he was afterwards able to repay to Gassmann's two infant daughters when they were left destitute by their father's death. Under Gassmann Salieri made rapid progress in composition. In 1770 he produced his first opera Le donne letterate, which was well received. Several others followed with great success, especially the serious opera Armida, which delighted by the beauty of its melodies. Gassmann dying in 1774, Salieri, in 1775, succeeded him as imperial chapel-master. At this time Salieri being struck by Gluck's compositions, began to study the works of that great master, and also received instructions from him. In 1778-1780 he composed operas for Milan, Venice, and Rome. In 1781 Gluck having become aged and infirm, and feeling unable to set to music the French libretto of Les Danaïdes, for which he had been engaged at Paris, entrusted the composition of the music to Salieri. In 1784 Salieri carried Les Danaïdes with him to Paris, where it was performed with the greatest applause as a composition of Gluck until the thirteenth representation, when Gluck publicly declared Salieri to be the sole composer of the music. Returning to Vienna, he composed several operas between 1784 and 1787, and in the latter year his opera of Tarare was performed at Paris with great success. He was called upon the stage and crowned; the first time that such an honour was bestowed on an operatic composer. After his return to Vienna in that year he composed fourteen operas, the last of which was performed in 1804. Among his operas, Les Danaïdes and Tarare are reckoned the finest. In some points he was pre-eminently skilful as a dramatic composer, so that such men as Beethoven and Meyerbeer considered it an honour to receive his advice. In 1824, aged seventy-three, he obtained leave to retire from his avocations, and received a grant of his entire salary for life. He died on the 12th May 1825. A requiem which he had composed for his own death was performed on the occasion of his funeral. He was married and left several daughters. He bore the titles of Foreign Member of the French Institute, Member of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts, Foreign Correspondent of the Paris Conservatory, and Member of the Royal Academy of Music at Stockholm. Interesting details regarding Salieri's private and artistic life are contained in Herr Edler von Moisl's work Ueber das Leben und die Werke des Anton Salieri. Wien, 1827. Salieri's compositions for the church were five masses, one requiem, three Te Deum, and several other pieces. He composed three oratorios and eight cantatas; forty-six operas, and a great number of detached pieces of vocal music with accompaniments; two collections of fifty canons for voices alone, and one hundred and fifty compositions of the same kind in MS; a book of instruction in singing, one concerto for the organ, two do. for piano, 1 do. for flute and oboe; two symphonies; several serenades and some ballet-music; twenty-four variations for orchestra upon the subject of the The Spanish Folly. (G. F. G.)