Caccini, Francesca b. September 18, 1587 d. 1640 (circa) Composer, Singer, Instrumentalist. Nicknamed "The Songbird", she was one of the most famous and versatile musicians of the the 17th Century. Her comedy "La liberazione di Ruggiero" (1625) was the first opera written by a woman and the first to be performed outside of Italy. The youngest daughter of singer-composer Giulio Caccini, she was born in Florence and sang at the Medici Court as a child, along with her sister Settimia. She received an excellent musical education and learned to play the...[Read More] (Bio by: Robert Edwards) Basilica della Santissima Annunziata, Florence, Provincia di Firenze, Toscana, Italy Plot: Caccini Family Vault
Caccini, Giulio b. October 8, 1551 d. December 10, 1618 Composer, Singer, Music Theorist. An important pioneer of early Baroque vocal music. His opera "Euridice" (1600) was the first ever to be published. Caccini was born in Rome and studied music in Florence under the patronage of Cosimo de Medici, who admired his singing. Around 1574 he joined the Florentine Cammerata Society, a group of intellectuals who upheld Ancient Greek art as a model for a new creative simplicity; under its influence he began writing songs in a monodic style, using a...[Read More] (Bio by: Robert Edwards) Basilica della Santissima Annunziata, Florence, Provincia di Firenze, Toscana, Italy
Caccini, Settimia b. October 6, 1591 d. 1638 Singer, Composer. One of the first women to enjoy a successful career as a professional musician. The youngest daughter of singer-composer Giulio Caccini, she was born in Florence and sang at the Medici Court as a child, along with her sister Francesca. The family later formed the vocal group "Il Concerto Caccini" and entertained King Henri IV in Paris before going their seperate ways. Claudio Monteverdi invited Settimia to Mantua to create the role of Venus in his opera "Arianna" (1608)...[Read More] (Bio by: Robert Edwards) Basilica della Santissima Annunziata, Florence, Provincia di Firenze, Toscana, Italy Plot: Caccini Family Vault
Isaac, Heinrich b. 1450 d. March 26, 1517 Composer. One of the most gifted of high Renaissance-era musicians, regarded by his contemporaries as second only to Josquin Des Prez. Known facts of Isaac's early life are scant. He claimed he was born in Flanders but the earliest records (1484) show him traveling to Florence to begin his lifelong association with the Medici family. Until 1493 he was organist and singer at the Florence Cathedral and he may have been tutor to Lorenzo the Magnificent's children. In 1497 Isaac was given the non-...[Read More] (Bio by: Robert Edwards) Basilica della Santissima Annunziata, Florence, Provincia di Firenze, Toscana, Italy
b. September 18, 1587 d. 1640 (circa)