BIOGRAPHY

Ottorino Respighi was born in Bologna in 1870. He studied violin, viola, and composition at the Liceo Musicale. In 1900 he took a position as first violist in the Opera Orchestra in St. Petersburg, Russia, where he also studied composition with Rimsky-Korsakov.

He was mostly known as a soloist and it was not until 1908 after performances of his operatic works that he was appointed a professor of composition at the Conservatorio Santa Cecilia in Rome. He later became Director of the school, but resigned in 1923 to devote himself to writing music and giving concerts.

While he wrote operas, he is best known for his two symphonic poems The Fountains of Rome and The Pines of Rome.