Francesco Florimo studied under Niccolò Antonio Zingarelli at the music college of San Sebastiano in Naples, where he enrolled in November 1817. Zingarelli, already an established composer and later director of the Neapolitan Conservatory, taught Florimo counterpoint and influenced his early musical development during Florimo’s formative years as a student.
Florimo later honored his teacher by conducting Zingarelli’s Miserere for 53 voices on 20 April 1828 at a concert of the music college, reflecting the lasting professional respect he maintained for Zingarelli.