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Italian Baroque composer, violinist, and organist, renowned for his operas and sacred music. Giovanni Battista Pergolesi was a pivotal Italian composer of the late Baroque period. Born in Jesi, he studied at the Conservatorio dei Poveri di Gesù Cristo in Naples. Despite dying tragically young from tuberculosis at 26, he left an indelible mark on music history. His intermezzo 'La serva padrona' became a cornerstone of opera buffa, and his 'Stabat Mater' remains one of the most revered sacred works of the era. His style significantly influenced the transition from Baroque to Classical music.

• Pergolesi suffered from poor health throughout his life, likely due to congenital syphilis or tuberculosis, which severely impacted his mobility (often requiring crutches) and ultimately caused his death at only 26.
• He composed his most famous work, the 'Stabat Mater', while desperately ill, seeking refuge in a Franciscan monastery near Pozzuoli during the final months of his life.
• His comic intermezzo 'La serva padrona' (The Servant Turned Mistress), originally performed between acts of his opera seria 'Il prigionier superbo', achieved enormous popularity across Europe after his death. Its performance in Paris in 1752 ignited the fierce 'Querelle des Bouffons' (War of the Comic Actors), a major debate pitting supporters of traditional French opera (Lully, Rameau) against proponents of the newer, simpler Italian comic style championed by Pergolesi.
• Despite his short life, Pergolesi's posthumous fame was immense. Many works by lesser-known composers were falsely attributed to him in the 18th century to capitalize on his popularity, creating confusion about his true output that musicologists later had to untangle.