Pietro Porfirii

Pietro Porfirii, born in Mondolfo around 1640, whose date of death is not known with certainty, as sources place him alive after 1714, was an Italian composer and also a member of the clergy. His career belongs to the musical life of the small towns of the Marche, where maestri di cappella at collegiate churches and provincial cities wrote both sacred music and operas for local theatres.

In 1692 he held the post of maestro di cappella at the collegiate church of San Nicolò in Fabriano. According to Radiciotti (1893), he lived for many years in the surroundings of Senigallia and worked as maestro di cappella in Ostra, Jesi, Arcevia and Pesaro. A reference in Ricordi places him as a canon in Urbino in 1709, a detail which, according to that same source, probably derives from the libretto of La Leucippe and should be treated with caution.

His operatic output, all of which is lost, includes titles such as Zenocrate, Lo schiavo fortunato in Algeri, Il Vespasiano, La forza del sangue o vero Gl'equivoci gelosi, L'Isifile amazzone di Lenno and La Leucippe. He also published chamber cantatas for solo voice, such as his Op. 1 (Bologna, 1692). His legacy today is above all documentary: we know his work through librettos and references, not through surviving scores.