Priamo Gallisay
Priamo Gallisay - Daniela Spoto 2022, © CCIAA NU

Priamo Gallisay

Priamo Gallisay (b. Nuoro, 19 October 1853–d. Ozieri, 30 July 1930) was an Italian musician and artist.

The eldest son of a wealthy landowner, his musical talent became apparent at a young age.

Priam Gallisay, portrait as an adolescent, second half of the 19th century
Priam Gallisay, portrait as an adolescent, second half of the 19th century - © Istituto Superiore Regionale Etnografico della Sardegna - https://www.sardegnadigitallibrary.it/detail/6499ba50e487374c8f8059f0
Priam Gallisay, half-length portrait, early 1900s
Priam Gallisay, half-length portrait, early 1900s - © Istituto Superiore Regionale Etnografico della Sardegna - https://www.sardegnadigitallibrary.it/detail/6499ba50e487374c8f8059e6

In 1867, he attended the Collegio di Vallelunga in Florence, where he distinguished himself for his musical skill and performance as a student. 
Giorgio Asproni, a Nuoro politician and friend of Gallisay’s father, followed his progress and became a kind of mentor.

He continued his education in Switzerland at the prestigious Institut Chateau du Lancy, graduating with honours in 1871. 
He completed his training at the Conservatorio di Santa Cecilia in Rome, where he became a Royal Academician in 1896 and decided to concentrate his efforts on composition.

Priamo Gallisay, il musicista seduto al pianoforte, 1903
Priamo Gallisay, il musicista seduto al pianoforte, 1903 - © Istituto Superiore Regionale Etnografico della Sardegna - https://www.sardegnadigitallibrary.it/detail/6499ba50e487374c8f8059eb

In 1876, after returning to Sardinia, Gallisay married Battistina Tola, with whom he had four children. He devoted himself entirely to teaching music and enjoyed a Bohemian lifestyle. This led to economic difficulties and he gradually squandered his inheritance.

Despite his talent as a composer and a range that spanned varied music genres, he never achieved national recognition.
However, in Nuoro, he enjoyed the admiration of his illustrious fellow townswoman Grazia Deledda, who introduced him to Angelo de Gubernatis. Through this connection, Deledda’s Mattinata di marzo set to music by Gallisay was published in the magazine Vita Italiana in 1895.

Priam Gallisay, March 1912
Priam Gallisay, March 1912 - © Istituto Superiore Regionale Etnografico della Sardegna - https://www.sardegnadigitallibrary.it/detail/6499ba50e487374c8f805a0a
Priamo Gallisay with the conductor G. Armani and the main cast of the musical melodrama Rosella
Priamo Gallisay with the conductor G. Armani and the main cast of the musical melodrama Rosella - © Sardegna Digital Library - https://www.sardegnadigitallibrary.it/detail/6499bc39e487374c8f808828

In 1896, Priamo Gallisay composed music for Rosella, based on the novel Don Zua by Antonio Ballero, and convinced Pasquale Dessanai to write the libretto for the opera in Italian.
Although it was a hit with the audience at the Teatro Sociale in Varese in October 1897, it was panned by the critics.

Priamo Gallisay, 1913
Priamo Gallisay, 1913 - © Istituto Superiore Regionale Etnografico della Sardegna - https://www.sardegnadigitallibrary.it/detail/6499ba50e487374c8f8059f8

That same year, Gallisay was granted the prestigious title of academic in the composers category by the R. Accademia di Santa Cecilia of Rome.

Tired and suffering ill health, he retired to Ozieri, where he spent the last years of his life. 
He died at the age of seventy-seven on 30 July 1930.