Gaetano Francone was active in Naples between 1688–1717 but biographical details are scarce. Archival records from the Conservatorio di Sant’Onofrio a Capuana show that he was employed there as a string teacher from 1688 until his death (the composer Francesco Durante was among his students). He was elected governor of the city’s largest, most powerful guild of musicians, the Congregazione e Monte dei Musici at the church of San Giorgio Maggiore, and his name appears among the violinists for the five main festivals at the Santa Casa dell’Annunziata. Additionally, on 12 June 1697 he joined the chapel of the Tesoro di San Gennaro as first violinist in the secondo coro degli strumenti, serving there until his death. The Tesoro’s governors described him as a ‘virtuoso renowned for his thorough abilities’, and they announced his replacement on 25 May 1717.
