Beniamino Cesi

Beniamino Cesi was an Italian concert pianist, composer and piano professor. He taught many of the most distinguished early 20th century pianists of the Neapolitan school, and his influence is still felt to this day.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article on Beniamino Cesi.

From the period sources

Beniamino Cesi, born in Naples in 1845, was a distinguished pianist and professor at the Naples Conservatorio from 1866, according to the Dictionary of Music (1896). He received a comprehensive musical education, studying composition under Mercadante and Pappalardo at the Conservatorio, and privately with the renowned pianist Thalberg. Cesi was recognized as an “excellent pianist” and performed not only in Italy but also in Paris, Alexandria, and Cairo, as noted in the Dictionary of Music (1908).

His influence as a teacher was considerable, shaping a generation of musicians. Luigi Caraccioli, a composer and singing-teacher, was among his pupils at Naples from 1863 to 1869, as recorded in A Biographical Dictionary of Musicians (1900). Other notable students included Edgardo Del Valle de Paz, who embarked on pianistic tours through Italy and Egypt at sixteen, and Giuseppe Martucci, who became a celebrated pianist, conductor, and composer, performing with Cesi himself in Paris in 1878, as detailed in Grove’s Dictionary of Music and Musicians (1904). Cesi also taught Pietro Floridia, Ruggero Leoncavallo, and Michele Esposito, all of whom went on to significant careers in composition and performance. Cesi published piano pieces and songs, and a pianoforte Method, though an opera, Vittor Pisani, remained in manuscript. He passed away in February 1907.