SKU: P2.30106

Amilcare Ponchielli was born in 1834 in Paderno, Italy, and died in Milan in 1886. Ponchielli
studied at the prestigious Milan Conservatory between the ages of 9 and 18. He is most
recognized for his opera, La Gioconda, and primarily its ballet, The Dance of the Hours, which
premiered at La Scala in Milan in 1876. Ponchielli composed Paolo e Viginia in March of 1877 for
violin, clarinet and piano. In addition to composing, Ponchielli served as an organist in Cremona,
a bandmaster in Piacenza, and Maestro di Cappella at the Bergamo Cathedral. Ponchielli also
taught composition at the Milan Conservatory and counted Puccini among his pupils.
Gibbs' arrangement of Paolo e Viginia for Eb Clarinet, Bb Clarinet and Piano was commissioned
in August, 2000 by Diane Cawein Barger and Thomas Leistner. It premiered as part of a memorial
recital for Robert Marcellus on September 23, 2000.