Domenico Cimarosa was an Italian composer of the Classical period and a leading figure of the Neapolitan opera school, active primarily in Naples but also working in Rome, Venice, Florence, Saint Petersburg (1787-1791), and Vienna (1791-1793). His prolific output totals more than 80 operas, roughly 60 comic and 20 serious, alongside instrumental works and church music, with his comic masterpiece Il matrimonio segreto (1792) achieving enormous popularity across Europe. He died in Venice in 1801, likely of stomach cancer, having continued composing almost until the end; rumors that he had been poisoned were disproved by an official inquest.

Alongside Giovanni Paisiello, Cimarosa was regarded as the most popular opera composer of the late 18th century, and Il matrimonio segreto remains his enduring contribution to the operatic repertoire. His comic operas helped shape the conventions of opera buffa that influenced later composers, and his admirers included the writer Stendhal, who counted Cimarosa’s music among his greatest passions alongside Mozart and Shakespeare. While much of his vast output has faded from regular performance, his best-known works continue to be staged as representative examples of late 18th-century Italian comic opera.

Sources:

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domenico_Cimarosa