Dates for musical periods such as Baroque, Classical, Romantic, etc. are somewhat arbitrary.
AD
- Italian Medieval Music.
- ---590 — Gregory The Great , for whom the ''Gregorian'' chant is named, elected Pope. He codifies the chants of the Western church.
- ---1026 —Monk, Guido D'Arezzo , writes ''Micrologus'', founds modern system of Musical Notation and the do-re-mi system of naming notes.
- Italian Renaissance Music.
- ---1525 — Giovanni Pierluigi Da Palestrina born (d. 1594).
- ---1537 — ''Santa Maria di Loreto'', the first music conservatory, is built in Naples .
- ---1564 — Violin production starts in Cremona in the workshop of Andrea Amati.
- ---1567 — Claudio Monteverdi born (d. 1643).
- ---1580 — Vincenzo Galilei publishes ''Dialogo della Musica''.
- ---1590 — Monteverdi's first book of madrigals published, ''Ecco mormorar l'onde''.
- ---1597 — Jacopo Peri 's ''La Dafne'', the "first opera", is staged at Palazzo Corsi in Florence .
- Italian Baroque Music.
- ---1607 — Monteverdi's first opera, ''Orfeus''.
- ---1637 — Europe's first opera house, the ''Teatro Tron'', opens in Venice .
- ---1644 — Violin maker, Antonio Stradivari born (d. 1737).
- ---1660 — Birth of Alessandro Scarlatti (d. 1725).
- ---1709 — First ''fortepiano'' (modern piano) built by Bartolommeo Cristofori in Florence .
- ---1718 — Alessandro Scarlatti's ''The Triumph of Honour'' paves the way for Italian Comic Opera .
- ---1725 — Vivaldi 's ''Four Seasons'' published.
- Italian Classical Music and Comic Opera
- ---1737 — The '' Teatro San Carlo '' opens in Naples .
- ---1753 — Pergolesi 's'' La Serva Padrona '' (''The Servant Mistress''), plays in Paris and starts a continental rage for Italian Comic Opera .
- ---1760 — ''La Cecchina'' by Niccolò Piccinni, later praised by Verdi as the first true Italian comic opera.
- ---1778 — The ''Teatro alla Scala''— La Scala —opens in Milan .
- ---1792 — Birth of G. Rossini (d. 1868).
- ---1797 — Birth of Gaetano Donizetti (d. 1848).
- ---1801 — Birth of Vincenzo Bellini (d. 1835).
- ---1813— Birth of Giuseppe Verdi (d. 1901).
- ---1816— Rossini's ''The Barber of Seville'' performed for the first time.
- Italian Romantic Music.
- ---1828 — Debut of violinist Paganini in Vienna .
- ---1829 — Rossini's last opera, ''William Tell''.
- ---1831 — ''Norma'', opera by Bellini.
- ---1832 — ''Elisir d'amore'', opera by Donizetti.
- ---1835 — First festival of the Canzone Napoletana , the Neapolitan song.
- ---1842 — ''Nabucco'', Verdi's first successful opera.
- ---1847 — ''MacBeth'', opera by G. Verdi.
- ---1858 — Birth of Giacomo Puccini (d. 1924).
- ---1886 — ''Otello'', opera by G. Verdi.
- ---1896 — ''La Bohème'', opera by Puccini.
- Modern Italian Music.
- ---1900 —''Tosca'', opera by Puccini
- ---1902 — Tenor Enrico Caruso , stung by criticism, leaves Italy for America.
- ---1907 — Ferruccio Busoni publishes ''Sketches for a New Musical Aesthetic.
- ---1914 —''The Fountains of Rome'', prominent orchestral piece by Ottorino Respighi .
- ---1922 — Death of Alessandro Moreschi , last Vatican Castrato singer.
- ---1924 — Arturo Toscanini conducts Puccini's last opera ''Turandot'' at ''La Scala'' in Milan.
- ---1925 — Italian radio starts to broadcast music programs.
- ---1951 — First San Remo Festival of Italian popular music.
- ---1953 — First edition of the Ravello Festival .
- ---1954 — ''Tarantella Napoletana'', first Italian film musical.
- ---1958 — First edition of ''Canzonissima'', popular TV song festival; first edition of the '' Festival Dei Due Mondi '' in Spoleto.
- ---1994 — The National Symphony Orchestra of the RAI (Italian Radio & Television) is formed, uniting the earlier orchestras of Torino, Milan, Rome and Naples. Based in Torino.
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