Maria Teresa Agnesi was an Italian composer, harpsichordist, and singer who came from a modest noble family. Her social position allowed her to receive a good education. The Agnesi household was a place full of intellectual activity, which greatly influenced her and her sister Maria Gaetana, who also had musical talent and became a mathematician. Agnesi's music began with simple styles and became more complex over time. She wrote at least four operas, with some sources suggesting up to six. Her operas often included repeated musical sections and specific forms. Besides operas, she composed demanding keyboard and vocal pieces, as well as music for small groups. From the late 1740s, Agnesi shared her music with royal patrons across Europe, gaining recognition and more chances for her work to be performed. Her music appeared to be especially appreciated in Vienna and Dresden, as shown by decorated copies made for those courts. She dedicated her first cantata, Il restauro d’Arcadia, to a Milanese governor in 1747 and had her first serious opera, Ciro in Armenia, performed in 1753. She also dedicated collections of her music to rulers supporting women artists, and some of her pieces were performed for notable noble events. In 1752, Agnesi married Pier Antonio Pinottini, but his poor financial choices caused the couple to face serious money troubles, forcing them to sell belongings to pay debts. Maria Teresa Agnesi died in Milan in 1795, and her portrait is now displayed in the theatrical museum at La Scala.