Antonio Carlos Gomes

Antônio Carlos Gomes was a Brazilian composer who achieved international fame with his operas, especially Il Guarany, which premiered at La Scala in Milan in 1870. He was the first New World composer whose work was accepted by Europe, and the only non-European who was successful as an opera composer in Italy, during the "golden age of opera", contemporary to Verdi and Puccini. He was also the first composer of non-European lineage to be accepted into the Classic tradition of music. He was influenced by Brazilian folk music and indigenous themes, as well as Italian and French styles. He composed eight operas, as well as songs, choruses, and piano pieces. He was a protégé of Emperor Dom Pedro II, who sponsored his studies in Italy. He also wrote the hymn Il saluto del Brasile for the centenary of American independence, which was performed in Philadelphia in 1876. He returned to Brazil several times, receiving honors and acclaim from his countrymen. He died in Belém in 1896, at the age of 60, from heart failure. He is considered the most important Brazilian composer of the 19th century and one of the greatest representatives of Brazilian nationalism in music.