rious at Tordesillas, and Giron went over to the enemy. Padilla was now reinstated in the command, but after skilfully avoiding a battle for some time, he was completely defeated and taken prisoner at Villadar, 23rd April, 1521, and executed on the following day. His brave wife, Maria Padilla, invoked the assistance of the French, and stirred up the city of Toledo to avenge his death. The city resisted for four months, but was obliged to submit, and Maria fled to Portugal.—F. M. W.
PADILLA, Lorenzo de, historiographer to Charles V., born towards the end of the fifteenth century; died in 1540. He wrote a general history of Spain, of which only a few sheets were ever printed; a "Catalogo de los Santos de España, 1598; "Libro do las antiguedades de España," afterwards edited by Pellicer, Valencia, 1669; and several MS. works.—F. M. W.
PADOVANINO, Alessandro, the son of Dario Varotari, called Padovanino from his birth-place, was born at Padua (Padova) in 1590, and studied painting at Venice, where he also long resided. He died in 1650. He had a facile execution, and, like most Venetian painters, was a good colourist; his chief excellence was in painting children, and he was fond of introducing them into his pictures. The National gallery possesses a fair specimen of his work in the picture of "Cornelia and her children."—(Ridolfi.)—R. N. W.
PAËR, Ferdinand, an eminent dramatic composer, was born at Parma in 1771. After having studied in the seminary of that town, he devoted himself to composition under Giretti, a Neapolitan, and adjunct of the celebrated Sala at the conservatory of La Pietà. At the age of ten Paër went to Venice, and not long afterwards wrote an opera there, "Circe," which was successful. From Venice he proceeded to Padua, Milan, Florence, Naples, Bologna, &c. At length the duke of Parma, who was his godfather, bestowed on him a pension, giving him permission to travel to Vienna, for the purpose of composing some works in that city. On the death of Naumann in 1801, Paër was invited to Dresden, with the appointment of chapel-master for life. After the death of his patron, the duke of Parma, Paër accepted the offer of the elector of Saxony; and he accordingly soon after arrived at Dresden, where he composed several operas, each of which met with brilliant success. After the battle of Jena, Napoleon being at Dresden, desired that Paër, together with his wife who was an excellent singer, should be engaged in his suite. They accordingly followed the emperor to Posen and Warsaw, where they gave several concerts at which Napoleon was present, who afterwards obtained their regular discharge from the Saxon court, and engaged Paër for the court of France; upon which he proceeded to Paris, where he subsequently continued to reside. The situations which he held under Napoleon were, conductor of the chamber music and composer to the emperor. Paër was a member of the Academy of the Fine Arts at Naples, and those at Bologna and Venice. He had composed up to the year 1811 thirty operas, exclusive of overtures, sonatas, cantatas, ariettes, and other light compositions. Paër died at Paris in 1839.—E. F. R.
PAESIELLO, Giovanni, a musician, was born at Tarento, 9th May, 1741, and died at Naples, 15th June, 1816. His father, a veterinary surgeon, placed him in the Jesuits' college of his native town, in 1746, where he became so conspicuous for his fine contralto voice and musical feeling, that he was admitted into the choir of the Capuchin church. After some preparatory study under a priest, he went accordingly to the capital, and entered the Conservatorio di S. Onofrio in June, 1754. There he was a pupil of Durante, until this master's death in the following year, when he continued his studies under teachers who pursued Durante's system of instruction. Paesiello was appointed primary master, or teacher of the junior classes, in the Conservatorio in 1759, and from that date until 1763, he distinguished himself by the composition of many pieces of church music. He then wrote a comic intermezzo, which was performed in the private theatre of the students; and this was so highly approved, that he was engaged to go to Bologna to compose an opera, "La Pupilla," the first work he there produced, was completely successful, and he was consequently engaged to write for all the chief cities of Italy. The first of his operas that seems to have been performed out of the theatre in which it was originally produced, was "Il Marchese di Tulipano," which was given with so much applause at Rome, that its popularity extended even beyond the limits of Italy. In the full flush of this success, the young composer returned to Naples, where he found a powerful rival in Piccini; and upon the departure of this practised master, he met with another difficult opponent in Cimarosa, who had then newly entered upon public notice, and was winning golden opinions by everything he produced. It is said that Paesiello, not content with asserting his talent against that of his competitor for general favour, employed every means of private interest he could command to hinder Cimarosa's advancement, and that when these two had come to a mutual understanding not to interfere with one another's opportunities, they combined to throw all possible obstacles in the way of Guglielmi, who returned to Naples after some years' absence in 1774, and who also claimed the right of exercising his ability as a composer. He too, in time, overcame the schemes of his unnatural brother artists, and the three then brought out opera for opera, against one another, in a more generous spirit of emulation. One of Paesiello's productions of this time was the comic opera, "L'Idolo Cinese," which was originally played in the private theatre of the royal palace, it being the first work of its class ever given there—the custom that had limited the performances to serious operas only, being broken through as a special compliment to the composer. He had now advantageous offers of engagements from London and Vienna; but he received such munificent proposals from Catherine II. to visit Petersburg, that he gave these the preference. In his old age, he classified his dramatic works as belonging to three periods of his life, each distinguished by a difference of style; the first of these epochs closes with his quitting Italy, and comprises fifty-two operas, all produced in the marvellously brief term of fourteen years. Paesiello started for Russia in July, 1777, and was greatly honoured on his arrival there. The third work he wrote for the Italian opera in Petersburg, was "Il Barbiere di Siviglia," the celebrity of Beaumarchais' recently-produced comedy making the subject peculiarly attractive, and the musical treatment still enhancing its interest. Besides composing for the theatre, Paesiello wrote a very large number of pianoforte sonatas for the Grand-duchess Maria Federowna, several cantatas for performance on special occasions, and a theoretical work consisting chiefly of figured basses as exercises in accompaniment. When, after eight years, he resigned his very lucrative appointment and returned southwards, he rested at Warsaw long enough to write and produce his oratorio of "Il Passione," and at Vienna long enough to compose twelve symphonies for the Emperor Joseph II., as well as the greatly-esteemed opera of "Il Re Teodoro." According to his own classification, the second period of Paesiello's career now closes, and includes the production of thirteen operas. He reached Rome before the end of 1785, where he was met by a prejudice against the fruits of his labours in Russia, it being supposed that he had abandoned his natural style, to meet the colder and less genial taste of the audience he had there to please. Accordingly he now reproduced the "Barbiere" without success, though in the same city thirty-one years later, the public refused to listen to Rossini's resetting of the libretto, on account of the esteem in which they then held Paesiello's opera. Our musician was cordially welcomed to Naples by Ferdinand IV., who gave him a liberal engagement, and showed him the strongest marks of favour. He was thus induced to fix his abode in that city, and refused consequently an invitation from Berlin and another from the court of Russia, where his return was much desired. He was also again solicited to come to London, and being unable to comply, he wrote the opera of "La Locanda," and sent it here for performance. This work made little or no impression; but he reproduced it at Naples with some additions, under the title of "Il Fanatico in Berlina," with better effect. "Nina," the opera which retained possession of the stage later than any other of Paesiello's works, was first performed at Belvidere, a summer residence of the royal family of Naples, about this time, and at once achieved the popularity it held so long throughout Europe. The revolution of 1797, with the expulsion of the king, shook for a time our composer's position in Naples. To meet this emergency, however, he made profession of republican principles, and so obtained a rich appointment as director of music to the nation. This of course he lost on the king's restoration in 1799; and being regarded as an adherent of the revolutionary party, he was not reinstated in his court engagement, until, by most servile submission and by exerting every possible interest, after two years he regained the royal favour. On the death of General Hoche, Bonaparte, then first consul, offered a prize for the composition of a funeral march in honour of this hero. Cherubini and Paesiello were among the
