Amilcare Ponchielli

Amilcare Ponchielli was an Italian composer born in 1834 in Paderno Fasolaro (now Paderno Ponchielli) who began his career in the mid-19th century and worked primarily in the operatic genre. His music blends lyrical melody with rich orchestral colour rooted in the Italian bel canto tradition and Romantic sensibilities, and he served as a teacher at the Milan Conservatory where he influenced a later generation of Italian composers.