Italy’s Renaissance man died today aged 91

The death has been reported of Roberto De Simone, a man for all seasons. An ethnomusicologist by vocation, he started out as harpsichordist in the Domenico Scarlatti Orchestra. In the 1960s he founded the Nuova Compagnia di Canto Popolare.

In 1976 De Simone emerged as a playwright and composer with the stage musical La Gatta Cenerentola. Further major works followed – Mistero napoletano, L’Opera buffa del Giovedì Santo, and Stabat Mater. He found time to be artistic director of San Carlo Theatre in Naples from 1981 to 19987 and then director of the Naples Conservatory. He also composed film scores.

Valerio Tura writes: ‘A great man, incredibly intelligent and knowledgeable, and very witty. Working at Teatro Comunale di Bologna in the time of De Simone’s legendary Cenerentola production (Chailly, Bartoli, Desderi, Spagnoli, Matteuzzi, 1992) is an unforgettable moment of my professional life. Sit terra levis.’