Italian librettist and composer.

Solera started out very young as a poet and novelist following studies in music and literature.
Between 1840 and 1845 he composed four operas with his own librettos; none were successful. His fame as a librettist was affirmed only when he started working in collaboration with Giuseppe Verdi, who was at the start of his long career. Solera gave Verdi the librettos for Oberto, conte di San Bonifacio (1839), Nabucco (1842), Giovanna d'Arco (1845) and Attila (1840).
From 1845 to 1855 he lived in Spain where he worked as impresario/orchestral director in various cities of the Iberian peninsula; he also composed a new opera with his own libretto (La Hermana de Pelayo, given in Madrid in 1845), wrote a historical poem titled La Toma de Loiò (the capture of Loiò) and a libretto for Juan Arrieta (director of the Conservatory of Madrid): La conquista di Granada, performed in 1850 and again in 1855 with the title Isabella la Cattolica. He collaborated with an authoritative political journal, and his name appeared together with Spain's best writers.
But his life was not all poetry, music and theatre. In 1856 he went back to Milan and started travelling between Turin, Paris and the Lombard capitol, maintaining contacts with the conspirators and acting even as secret courier between Cavour and Napoleon III. But he became disgusted with Napoleon's policies with the armistice of Villafranca (July 11th, 1859), abandoned the field and returned to Milan, entering into public security administration, where he was highly placed. Once he left this appointment, he lived in poverty after trying to make a living as an antique merchant.
He lived his last days in isolation in Milan, expiring at four o'clock in the morning on April 21st, 1878, Easter Sunday. His funeral was held the next day at 4 pm at the Monumental Cemetery in Milan.