Giuseppina Ronzi de Begnis

Giuseppina Ronzi de Begnis was an Italian soprano opera singer famous for the roles written for her by the prominent composers of the 1820s and 1830s. Her father, Gaspare, was a prominent ballet dancer and choreographer, and her mother, Antonia, was a ballerina. Her brothers Stanislao and Pollione were opera singers. As a singer, she made her debut in Naples at the Teatro dei Fiorentini in 1814 in Giovanni Cordella's L'Avaro, followed by important engagements in Bologna in 1816, also appearing in Genoa, Florence; in 1817 as Giulia La Vestale, and in Bergamo. She married Italian bass Giuseppe de Begnis (1793–1849) when she was only 16. The marriage lasted only a few years and the two separated in 1825.