Araya F., (1709 - after 1775), composer

Categories / Art/Music, Theatre/Personalia
ARAYA Francesco (1709 - after 1775), Italian composer, first foreign Court Kapellmeister, composer of the first opera staged in St. Petersburg (The Might of Love and Hatred, 1736), and the first opera in Russian (Tsefal and Prokris, libretto by A.P. Sumarokov, 1755). Invited by court violinist and jester P. Mira (Adamka Pedrillo), who was sent to Italy to organise stationary court theatre, Araya came to work in St. Petersburg along with other artists from the Italian Opera and Commedia dell' Arte. Arrived at St. Petersburg in the summer of 1735 and headed the court's music until 1759, when he was "allowed to return to his native land." Besides the works mentioned, Araya wrote and staged nine Italian opera-series in St. Petersburg, and was also responsible for regular court concerts, performances of Italian cantatas and intermezzos, and music for banquets. Emperor Peter III invited Araya to write an opera for his coronation, but Araya didn't have time to complete it, and shortly after the overturn of 1762 he left St. Petersburg. Along with other court artists, Araya first lived in the Italian Campaign Corps of the Third Winter Palace, in 1747 moved to C.A. Minich's former residence on Vasilievsky Island, and in 1754 to Musin-Pushkin's former residence, then again to the Campaign Corps.

Reference: Музыкальный Петербург: Энцикл. слов. Т. 1: XVIII в.: В 5 кн. СПб., 1996. Кн. 1.

A. L. Porfiryeva. Araya Francesco
Minich Christoph Antonovich (Burghard Christoph), Count
Mira Pietro (Adamka Pedrillo)
Musin-Pushkin Ivan Yakovlevich
Peter III, Emperor
Sumarokov Alexander Petrovich
Музыкальный Петербург: Энцикл. слов. Т. 1: XVIII век. СПб., 1996 1736
1755