Luigi Pacini

Luigi Pacini (25 March 1767 – 2 May 1837) was an Italian opera singer who appeared on the principal stages of his native country as well as in Spain and Austria in a career that spanned over 30 years. He began his career as a tenor but in 1805 started singing bass roles and rose to prominence in that repertoire. Amongst the numerous roles he created in world premieres were Geronio in Rossini's Il turco in Italia and Parmenione in his L'occasione fa il ladro. Pacini was born in the Province of Pistoia and died in Viareggio where in his later years he taught singing at the conservatory founded by his son, Giovanni Pacini.

Life and career Pacini was born in Popiglio di Piteglio, a hamlet in the hills outside Pistoia in Tuscany. He appears to have spent his childhood in Rome and showed an early aptitude for music. The Duke of Sermoneta became the young Pacini's patron and arranged for him to study music, first in Rome with Giovanni Masi, the maestro di cappella of San Giacomo degli Spagnoli and then in Naples at the Conservatorio della Pietà dei Turchini under Giacomo Tritto.