Biography for
Gian Carlo Menotti

photos

board

add

contact

details

Date of Birth

Date of Death

Trivia

Has a burial plot next to lifelong friend Samuel Barber. Since he has little savings and lives on royalties of his operas, Barber put in his burial provisions that a marker acknowledging him be put there even if he has no money for his body to be moved.

Shared a home in Westchester, New York, with Samuel Barber for many years.

Left the Spoleto Music Festival USA in 1993, after disagreements with the festival board over artistic and financial direction and control.

Studied at the Verdi Conservatory in Milan, Italy; and Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Close friend of American composer Stanley Hollingsworth (1924-2003).

Also wrote music for ballet, orchestra, and other productions, as well as the librettos for all his operas.

Was an Italian citizen, but called himself Italian-American.

Founder of both the Festival of Two Worlds in Spoleto, Italy, and the Spoleto Festival USA, in Charleston, South Carlina.

The New York Times referred to him as the most-performed opera composer in the United States.

Composed his first full-length opera at age 11.

Two-time Pulitzer Prize recipient.

Began composing at age 7.

Won the Pulitzer Prize for music in 1950 for "The Consul" and again in 1955 for "The Saint of Bleecker Street.".

Survived by a son, Francis Menotti.

Founded arts festivals in three countries: the Festival of Two Worlds held in Spoleto in his native Italy, Spoleto USA in Charleston, SC and another in Melbourne, Australia, which helped several renowned performers get their start, among them Shirley Verrett, Patrice Chereau, Paul Taylor and Twyla Tharp. Called the most performed opera composer in the United States by The New York Times, several of his English-language operas were extremely popular in the U.S.

Studied with Leonard Bernstein and Samuel Barber at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where he returned to teach after completing his program.

His music for "Amahl and the Night Visitors" was not nominated for an Emmy until four years after he had composed it.

Personal Quotes

Fate has blessed me. But if there's one thing I regret, it's this accursed festival. It's robbed too much of my time from composition and from the chance to just be curious about life, art and philosophy. Suddenly there's no time left, and it makes me feel desperate. - NY Times interview, 2001.

I started Spoleto because I did not want to be the marginal person, the entertainer. I wanted to have a community, to be part of a community. - 1981 interview on Spoleto Music festival.

I needed to feel that I was needed. Thirty years ago, Spoleto was on the verge of bankruptcy. Now it's a flourishing town that owes its life to the festival. - on the Spoleto music festival

I feel like the sorcerer's apprentice I've started something and I don't know how to stop it. - 1981 interview on the Spoleto music festival.

	You may report errors and omissions on this page to the IMDb database managers. They will be examined and if approved will be included in a future update. Clicking the 'Update' button will take you through a step-by-step process.
	With our Resume service you can add photos and build a complete resume to help you achieve the best possible presentation on the IMDb. Click here to add your resume and/or your photos to IMDb.

Browse biographies section by name

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z