Il Xerse
Music by Francesco Cavalli · libretto by Nicolò Minato · premiered 1655
Il Xerse, usually written Xerse (English: Xerxes; French: Xerxès), is an Italian opera by Francesco Cavalli (specifically, a dramma per musica) about Xerxes I. The libretto was written by Nicolò Minato and was later set by both Giovanni Bononcini (Xerse, 1694) and George Frideric Handel (Serse, 1738). Minato's plot outline is loosely based on Book 7 of Herodotus's Histories. The opera, consisting of a prologue and three acts, was composed in 1654 and first performed on 12 January 1655 at the Teatro SS. Giovanni e Paolo in Venice. It was dedicated to the Ferrarese nobleman Marchese Cornelio Bentivoglio.
Text from the Wikipedia article "Il Xerse", licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
About the Composer
Francesco Cavalli (born Pietro Francesco Caletti-Bruni; 14 February 1602 – 14 January 1676) was a Venetian composer, organist and singer of the early Baroque period. He succeeded his teacher Claudio Monteverdi as the dominant and leading opera composer of the mid 17th-century. A central figure of Venetian musical life, Cavalli wrote more than thirty operas, almost all of which premiered in the city's theaters. His best known works include Ormindo (1644), Giasone (1649) and La Calisto (1651).
Text from the Wikipedia article "Francesco Cavalli", licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.