The Resume

(August 17, 1686-March 3, 1768)
Born in Naples, Italy
Composer and vocal teacher
Wrote over 40 operas, including ‘Arianna e Teseo’ (1714), ‘Faramondo’ (1719), ‘Orlando’ (1720), ‘Germanico in Germania’ (1733), and ‘Arianna in Nasso’ (1733)
Most famous singing pupil was the castrato Farinelli

Why he might be annoying:

He was invited to London to start an opera company to compete with George Frederic Handel’s. It went bankrupt.
His florid style of composition went out of fashion during his lifetime.
When he died, he was so poor that a subscription concert was held to pay his funeral costs.

Why he might not be annoying:

He was fluent in Italian, English, French, and German, and could read Latin.
He hired a young Franz Joseph Haydn as his valet and accompanist.
Haydn said he learned ‘the true fundamentals of composition’ from Porpora.

Credit: C. Fishel

Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

• C. Fishel's Profiles [Series 78]
• I Died in Debt
• Look at Me, My Picture Is Art
• Opera Singers and Composers
• Profiles 47251-47500 (Ranked: 47474)

Year In Review:

In 2023, Out of 24 Votes: 45.83% Annoying
In 2021, Out of 10 Votes: 90.0% Annoying
In 2020, Out of 33 Votes: 66.67% Annoying