Ivan Zajc

Ivan Zajc (also Croatian: Ivan Zajc, Italian: Giovanni di Zayitz; pronounced [ǐʋan zâjts]; August 3, 1832 – December 16, 1914), was a Croatian composer, conductor, director and teacher who for over forty years dominated Croatia's musical culture. Through his artistic and institutional reform efforts, he is credited with its revitalization and refinement, paving the way for new and significant Croatian musical achievements in the 20th century. He is often called the Croatian Verdi.

Ivan Dragutin Stjepan Zajc was born in Fiume, modern-day Rijeka, Croatia. His family migrated from Bratislava, Slovakia; his father, Johann Zaytz, was of Czech descent, and his mother, Anna Bodensteiner was of German descent. His musical talent was evident very early on in his life, as he began to study the piano and violin at the age of five, performed in public by the age of six, and even began to compose his own music by the age of twelve. Nevertheless, despite his early musical success, his military bandmaster father was opposed to the idea of a career in music and wanted him to study law instead following the completion of his secondary education. In the end, Zajc's professors prevailed and he entered the Milan Conservatory in 1850 with his father's consent.

Zajc studied in Milan from 1850 to 1855, under the supervision of Stefano Ronchetti-Monteviti (counterpoint and composition), Alberto Mazzucato (orchestration), and Lauro Rossi (dramatic music). During this period, Zajc took his studies very seriously and regularly won prizes as one of the conservatory's most talented students. He was awarded first prize at his graduation examination for the opera La Tirolese (1855), which was performed on stage in the same year. Zajc's future as a composer and conductor in Milan was secure, but the death of his parents in the meantime forced him to return to Rijeka.

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