Born in Surcula d'Abruzzo, the naturalised-Venetian Rocco belongs to the historiography of gay studies on account of a single book, the authorship of which was denied him until recently, L'Alcibiade fanciullo a scola (The Boy Alcybiades at School, 1652).

It is a "summa apologetica" in form of a dialog between a teacher and a student, and how the teacher gets to persuade the boy to have sex with him. Rocco gave his manuscript to to Francesco Loredano, a Venetian Philosophy professor and the founder of the Academy. Loredano gave it to one Angelico Aprosio. The text was then published anonimously in Venice (1652). Jules Gay published a reprint in Paris in 1862.

The work was immediately suppressed, and only ten copies survived the attempts to destroy the whole print run. The survival of the work led to, in 1862, to its translation and publishing in Italian. Again the work elicited immediate condemnation. It was denounced by the police as a liber spurcissimus (a most filthy book) and largely destroyed. Jules Gay published a reprint in Paris in 1862.

Rocco's life and works are well documented in the academic annals of Venice. He studied with Cremonini, became a friar in order to teach philosophy at San Giorgio Maggiore monatery in venice, a teacher of excellence, he was promoted to a chair in rethoric.

Rocco turned down chairs in Padua and Pisa, and gracefully ended his life, having the pleasure of seeing his Alcibiade released after nearly twenty years of unhindered dissemination in manuscript.