Ruperto Chapí

Chapí was born at Villena, the son of a local barber.

He would gain some fame as an interpreter in the surroundings of the Moors and Christians Festival of Villena, also being highly sought after in those of other nearby towns.

He wrote many symphonic, band, choral and chamber works, as well as zarzuelas and operas, becoming, alongside Tomás Bretón, a fellow pupil of Emilio Arrieta at the Madrid Conservatory.

His most celebrated work is La revoltosa, written in the latter style.

Many of the preludes to his zarzuelas (including those to El tambor de granaderos and La patria chica) have remained staple items in Spanish orchestral concerts.