Nicola Porpora

Porpora's music is built around the human voice — his arias are showcases of breathtaking vocal virtuosity, with elaborate coloratura, dramatic contrasts, and long-breathed melodic lines designed to display the full capabilities of the greatest singers of the age. His orchestration is often more sophisticated than he's given credit for, with imaginative instrumental obbligatos and atmospheric scene-painting.

Trained in the great Neapolitan conservatory tradition alongside Leonardo Leo and Leonardo Vinci. He was Handel's direct rival in London during the 1730s, when their competing opera companies split the city's allegiance. His influence on vocal technique through his students is incalculable — Farinelli and Caffarelli were the greatest singers in history, and Porpora made them.

He dominated Naples in his early career, then moved to Venice, London (where he battled Handel), and Vienna. His London years saw fierce competition with Handel's opera company — a rivalry he ultimately lost. He returned to Italy and spent his final years in Naples in relative poverty. His reputation as a teacher always exceeded his fame as a composer, a balance that modern revivals are beginning to correct.

The young Joseph Haydn served as Porpora's accompanist and valet in Vienna around 1753, pressing his clothes and cleaning his shoes in exchange for lessons. Haydn later said that what he learned from Porpora about melody and vocal writing was invaluable. So the greatest teacher of singers also helped shape the greatest Classical symphonist — musical history is full of such hidden connections.

Porpora wrote a beautiful set of 12 Violin Sonatas that have nothing to do with opera — they're pure instrumental music of refinement and charm. They reveal a composer whose gifts extended well beyond vocal display, and they're increasingly recorded by Baroque violinists.

Porpora is in the midst of a significant revival. Countertenor specialists like Max Emanuel Cenčić and Philippe Jaroussky have championed his arias, and several operas have been staged in recent years. His instrumental music is increasingly recorded. He's moved from near-total obscurity to active rediscovery within a generation — an exciting composer to watch as more of his work returns to performance.