Francesca Cacciniaus barock

Francesca Caccini (* 18 September 1587 in Florence; † 1640 ibid.) was an Italian opera singer (soprano), composer and instrumentalist. She is one of the pioneers of the opera genre. Her (ballet) opera La liberazione di Ruggiero dall’isola d’Alcina (1625) is considered the earliest surviving opera by a female composer.

Life

Francesca Caccini received her first musical training in singing and lute from her father Giulio Caccini (1551-1618). In 1600, at the age of 13, she performed as a singer for the first time in Florence. She performed the opera Euridice by Jacopo Peri with interspersed parts from her father’s opera Euridice. There is a letter from Claudio Monteverdi to Cardinal Ferdinand of Gonzaga in which he emphasises her outstanding singing and playing of harpsichord, lute and guitar.

From September 1604 to June 1605, the Caccini family made a concert tour to the court of Henry IV in Paris at the request of Queen Maria de’ Medici. On the way, the five-part family ensemble of Giulio and Margherita (parents), and Francesca, Settima and Pompeo (siblings) sang in Modena, Milan, Turin and Lyon. Francesca was offered a permanent position in Paris, but the Grand Duke Ferdinando I de’ Medici ordered the family back to Florence. Florence was one of the most important cultural centres at the time. Francesca then retained her courtly position until 1627.

Francesca Caccini – called La Cecchina (singing bird) – was one of the best singers of her time. She accompanied herself on the harpsichord, the lute and the guitar. When her father died in 1618, she was, along with Jacopo Peri, the most important and best-paid musical personality at the Medici court in Florence.
Source Wiki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francesca_Caccini