ABSTRACT
When Provenzale assumed the direction of the cappella of the Conservatorio di S. Maria di Loreto, the four conservatoires in Naples were the heart around which developed the organization of modes of musical production beyond compare. In spite of the disruptions of the Masaniello Uprising and the plague of 1656, during the 1660s the four conservatoires were full to the brim with students, and some of them adopted a restricted entry policy or officially stopped new enrolments. Provenzale had an important role in this delicate process, and for just under forty years, from 1663 to 1701, he was the most important music teacher in Naples. He also had a significant influence on succeeding generations of Neapolitan musicians in the eighteenth century. Provenzale's pupils in Loreto not only took part in the experiments in sacred opera but also contributed to the fame of their maestro in the next decades.
