Barbieri Francisco, born Francisco Asenjo Barbieri, *3 August 1823 Madrid, †19 February 1894 Madrid, Spanish composer, conductor and musicologist. After abandoning his medical studies, he studied at the Madrid Conservatory from 1837 to 1845 under B. Saldoni (singing), R. Broka (clarinet), P. Albéniz (piano) and R. Carnicer (composition). During this period, he also pursued other activities: he worked as a café pianist and clarinettist in a military band; he sang in an Italian opera company performing at the Teatro del Circo in Madrid; and he taught at a music school in Salamanca. After completing his studies, he made a name for himself as a composer of zarzuelas and an organiser of musical life in Madrid; he was a co-founder of the association “La España Musical”. In 1849, he published his music reviews in the magazine “La Ilustración”. He contributed to the establishment of a theatre (1856) dedicated exclusively to the staging of zarzuelas – the Teatro de la Zarzuela. In the 1860s, he familiarised himself with the works of foreign composers whilst travelling across Europe. In 1866, he founded the Sociedad de Conciertos; serving as its orchestra conductor, he promoted the music of Beethoven and Wagner, as well as the works of Spanish composers, including C. de Morales. He was also one of the founders of the Sociedad de Bibliófilos Españoles. He bequeathed his extensive library collection, including his own works, to the Biblioteca Nacional in Madrid. In 1882, he joined the Real Academia Española (RAE).
Barbieri’s compositional style was shaped by the influence of Italian opera and Spanish music. Barbieri pioneered the so-called “grand zarzuela” (zarzuela grande). His first zarzuelas were one act, however, Jugar con fuego from 1851 was based on a three-act structural concept that was new at the time; this became a model for other Spanish composers, including P.J.E. Arrieta, and also inspired the stage works of I. Albéniz and M. de Falla.
Barbieri made a significant contribution by publishing Cancionero musical de los Siglos XV y XVI, a manuscript of 15th- and 16th-century compositions, which he transcribed and annotated. Through his work as a composer and musicologist, he sought to revive the tradition of Spanish national music, and became renowned as one of the most outstanding composers of zarzuela in the 19th century.
Literature: J. Subirá Manuscritos de Barbieri existentes en la Biblioteca Nacional, Madrid 1936; A. Martínez Olmedilla El maestro Barbieri y su tiempo, Madrid 1941, 3rd edition 1959; A.S. Salcedo Francisco Asenjo Barbieri. Su vida y sus obras, Madrid 1942; J. Subirá Historia de la música española y hispanoamericana, Madrid 1953; A. Sagardía, Dos compositores madrileños del siglo XIX, Rafael Hernando y Francisco Asenjo Barbieri, Madrid 1975; E. Casares Rodicio Francisco Asenjo Barbieri, 2 vols.: 1. El hombre y el creador, 2. Escritos, Madrid 1994; E. Casares Rodicio et al. Barbieri. Música, fuego y diamantes, exhibition catalogue at the Biblioteca Nacional de España, Madrid 2017.
