Marco Enrico Bossi
1861 — 1925
Marco Enrico Bossi was an Italian organist, composer, improviser and teacher.
Adapted from the Wikipedia article on Marco Enrico Bossi.
From the period sources
Marco Enrico Bossi, an Italian organist and composer, was born in Salò on April 25, 1861, the son of the organist of Morbegno. His musical education began at the Liceo Musicale in Bologna from 1871 to 1873, after which he studied at the Conservatorio of Milan from 1873 to 1881, learning composition under Ponchielli and organ under Fumagalli (Grove’s Dictionary, 1904; New Encyclopedia of Music and Musicians, 1924). Upon completing his studies, Bossi became organist and maestro di cappella at Como Cathedral. He later served as professor of organ and theory at the Naples Conservatorio from 1891 to 1895, before being appointed director of the Liceo Benedetto Marcello in Venice on January 1, 1896 (Grove’s Dictionary, 1904). In Venice, he also held the position of professor of composition and conducted the “Benedetto Marcello” concerts (New Encyclopedia of Music and Musicians, 1924).
In 1902, Bossi returned to Bologna as director of the Liceo Musicale (Dictionary of Music, 1908; Grove’s Dictionary, 1904). His compositions are noted for their “great boldness of harmonic treatment, much originality of design and a certain severity of style” (Grove’s Dictionary, 1904). This “severity of style” may have influenced his decision to abandon operatic composition, in which he made three early attempts: Paquita (1881), Il Veggente (1890), and L’ Angelo della Notte (Grove’s Dictionary, 1904; New Encyclopedia of Music and Musicians, 1924). A significant symphonic poem, Il Paradiso Perduto, Op. 125, was performed in Augsburg in 1903 (Dictionary of Music, 1908), and his cantata Giovanna d’Arco was performed by the Oratorio Society of New York in 1915 (Grove’s Dictionary: American Supplement, 1920). Bossi also co-authored the Metodo di Studio per l’Organo moderno (1893) with G. Tebaldini, which is considered a standard work (Grove’s Dictionary, 1904; Biographical Dictionary of Musicians, 1900). He was a member of the national commission on music and held notable decorations from both Italy and Spain (New Encyclopedia of Music and Musicians, 1924).