Italy: Mercadante

Saverio Mercadante (1795-1870) was in Italian composer of some import. He was known during his lifetime for his operatic compositions. After his death his fame receded; he is not so nearly well-known as other Italian opera composers. However, his technique was much-respected, making his influence on composers later in music history significant.

Italy issued this stamp in 1970, for the hundredth anniversary of the composer's death. The image includes a likeness of Mercadante and stylized "something" in the background. This stamp has appeared on the organ topical list for some time, I believe the assumption being the background somehow is stylized organ pipes. I am not convinced however. They could just as easily be piano strings in my opinion. Mercadante was a composer of operas. He has a single organ work in his oeuvre, an "Homage to Bellini." That work was recorded in 1995, that being the best single reference to the work I could find.