Francesca Caccini facts for kids

Francesca Caccini was a famous Italian composer and singer.

Francesca Caccini (born September 18, 1587 – died sometime after 1641) was a very talented Italian musician. She was a composer, singer, lute player, poet, and music teacher during the early Baroque period. People in Florence often called her "La Cecchina," which was a friendly nickname. She was the daughter of another famous musician, Giulio Caccini. Her opera, La liberazione di Ruggiero, is thought to be the oldest opera ever written by a woman.

Her Life Story

Growing Up

Francesca Caccini was born in Florence, Italy. She received a great education, learning subjects like Latin, Greek, other languages, literature, and math. She also started her music training early with her father. Records show that by 1602, Francesca and her sister Settimia were already singing for the Medici court, a powerful family in Florence. Her father, Giulio Caccini, directed the music, and his wife and two daughters sang beautifully.

In her younger years, Francesca performed with her family, including her parents, her half-brother Pompeo, and her sister Settimia. Their group was known as le donne di Giulio Romano. After she was hired by the court, she continued to perform with her family until Settimia got married and moved away.

Francesca worked for the Medici court as a teacher, singer, and composer until early 1627. By 1614, she was the highest-paid musician at the court. This was partly because her amazing musical skills showed off the idea of female excellence that the Grand-Duchess Christina of Lorraine wanted to promote. By 1623, she was earning 240 scudi, which was a lot of money!

Later Years

Francesca's first husband, Giovanni Battista Signorini, passed away in December 1626. They had one daughter named Margherita in 1622. Francesca quickly remarried in October 1627 to a nobleman from Lucca named Tommaso Raffaelli, who loved music.

She lived in Lucca with Raffaelli and had a son, also named Tommaso, in 1628. She also had some musical connections with the Buonvisi family there. After her second husband died in 1630, Francesca wanted to return to working for the Medici family. Her return was delayed by a series of plagues from 1630 to 1633. By 1634, Francesca was back in Florence with her two children. She taught music to her daughter Margherita and to the Medici princesses. She also composed and performed music for the women of the court. Francesca left the Medici service on May 8, 1641, and after that, there are no more public records of her.

Her Music Career

A Talented Composer

Francesca Caccini was known as a very fast and productive composer, just as busy as her court colleagues Jacopo Peri and Marco da Gagliano. However, sadly, very little of her music has survived today. Most of her music for the stage was written for comedies by the poet Michelangelo Buonarroti the Younger. Some of these plays included La Tancia (1613), Il passatempo (1614), and La fiera (1619).

In 1618, she published a collection of thirty-six songs for solo singers and duets. This collection, called Il primo libro delle musiche, showed off many different styles of music popular at the time. It included deeply emotional songs, joyful religious songs in Italian and Latin, and clever songs about the ups and downs of love.

The First Opera by a Woman

In the winter of 1625, Caccini composed all the music for a 75-minute "comedy-ballet" called La liberazione di Ruggiero dall'isola d'Alcina. This work was performed for the visiting crown prince of Poland, Ladislaus Sigismondo (who later became Władysław IV).

La liberazione was a clever mix of funny parodies of early opera scenes and surprisingly emotional moments. The music showed that Caccini was a master of all the musical and theatrical tricks of her time. She also had a strong sense of how to create a large, complete musical work. The prince enjoyed La liberazione so much that he had it performed again in Warsaw in 1628. This opera is widely recognized as the first opera ever written by a woman.

Her Musical Style

Caccini's musical style has been compared to that of famous composers like Monteverdi and Jacopo Peri. She began composing music after the Renaissance period ended, and she played a key role in developing the Baroque style. She composed in a very new and exciting musical environment. For many of her songs, she also wrote the poems that went with the music, and these often had a funny tone.

Her collection Primo libro is known for its clever "self-reflexivity." This means that many of her songs in this collection seem to "answer" each other. For example, the song "Che fai?" (meaning "What are you doing?") is followed by "Ardo" (meaning "I burn"). The songs also required great breath control, coordination between hands and voice, and a wide vocal range from the performer. Caccini used a musical pattern called romanescas in a unique way in these songs. The songs in this collection were meant to be accompanied by an instrument, with the performer adding their own harmonies. While no specific instrument was named, a theorbo (a type of lute) was likely used often.

Her Works

Francesca Caccini wrote music for at least sixteen stage productions. However, most of these works are now lost. Only La liberazione di Ruggiero and some parts of La Tancia and Il passatempo (published in her 1618 collection) have survived.

Her surviving music shows that Caccini was very careful when writing down her compositions. She paid special attention to how syllables and words were placed rhythmically, especially within musical decorations. She also carefully marked musical phrases and precisely wrote down long, flowing vocal melodies. While her music wasn't known for the strong, expressive dissonances that Monteverdi made popular, Caccini was a master of surprising and dramatic harmonies. In her music, it was harmony, more than counterpoint, that most powerfully showed emotion.

Here are some of her known operas and stage works:

• La Stiava (performed 1607) (lost)
• La mascherata, delle ninfe di Senna, a ballet, performed in Florence, 1611
• La tancia, music for a play, performed in Florence, 1611
• Il passatempo, music for a ballet, performed in Florence, 1614
• Il ballo delle Zingane, a ballet, performed in Florence, 1615 (music lost)
• Il Primo libro delle musiche a 1–2 voci e basso continuo (1618) - a collection of songs
• La fiera, music for a play, performed in Florence, 1619
• Il martirio de S. Agata, performed in Florence, 1622
• La liberazione di Ruggiero dall'isola d'Alcina, a musical comedy, performed in Florence (1625)
• Rinaldo inamorato, ordered by Prince Wladislaw of Poland, 1626.

See also

In Spanish: Francesca Caccini para niños