The Italian violinist, composer and conductor Luigi Arditi spent eleven years as conductor of Italian opera at Her Majesty’s in London, and in 1869 at Covent Garden. Seasons followed in St Petersburg and in Vienna, while in London he embarked on a series of promenade concerts. His contribution to London musical life was considerable, not least in the introduction of operas new to the city. He was, at one time, assisted by the young conductor Henry Wood. As a composer Arditi is chiefly known for his popular II bacio (The Kiss), one of a number of popular and ephemeral compositions.