Emilio Cavalieri
1550-1602
Born to a noble Roman family, Emilo was the son of Tommaso de'Cavalieri, a friend of Michelangelo and his circle. Emilio came to live in Florence as a part of the court of Ferdinando I, cardinal and then Grand Duke of Tuscany. On 3 September 1588 he was appointed Master of Music at the Basilico of San Lorenzo. He was a frequent participant at the Camerata de'Bardi -- the Florentine musical academy founded by Count Giovanni de'Bardi. Emilio was a composer of oratories, lamentations, and madrigals, and he was an organist and singing teacher, as well as a dancer, choreographer, and musical administrator. He was most probably involved in the Florentine production in 1600 of Euridice by Jacopo Peri, which is among the oldest, if not the oldest, example of musical theater.
With this opera, together with others composed by Jacopo Peri and Giulio Caccini with whom he collaborated, he developed the use of texts in musical theater, making melodrama possible. Responsible for music at Ferdinando's court, Cavalieri was involved in the production of the Intermedi per la Pellegrina, directing the execution and contributing to the composition of the final sixth intermedio.
Returning to Rome he was nominated by Ferdinando I to be Director of Music. In the capital he organized the city's cultural life, bringing forward in the last decade of the 17th Century the Oratorio del Crocifiso. In this context he presented his representation of The Soul and Body in 1600. It was not only his most famous work, but also one of the musical high points of the entire century.
A production of Soul and Body was included in the 1968 season of the Salzburg Festival, with Jose Van Dam, and the opera remained in the festival's repertoire until 1973.
With this opera, together with others composed by Jacopo Peri and Giulio Caccini with whom he collaborated, he developed the use of texts in musical theater, making melodrama possible. Responsible for music at Ferdinando's court, Cavalieri was involved in the production of the Intermedi per la Pellegrina, directing the execution and contributing to the composition of the final sixth intermedio.
Returning to Rome he was nominated by Ferdinando I to be Director of Music. In the capital he organized the city's cultural life, bringing forward in the last decade of the 17th Century the Oratorio del Crocifiso. In this context he presented his representation of The Soul and Body in 1600. It was not only his most famous work, but also one of the musical high points of the entire century.
A production of Soul and Body was included in the 1968 season of the Salzburg Festival, with Jose Van Dam, and the opera remained in the festival's repertoire until 1973.