Francesco Paolo Frontini studied under Pietro Antonio Coppola in Catania during his youth. At age 15, his first composition, the Qui tollis for tenor and orchestra, was performed in the city cathedral under the direction of Coppola, who served as his teacher and mentor at the time.
The close pedagogical relationship between them is further evidenced by Frontini's composition of a Requiem in 1876 dedicated to Coppola, explicitly written in honor of his deceased teacher.
