Florence is during 1400 and 1500 at the peak of its success. You could say it seems that all the great people of the time were born in Florence, or have moved there in order to breathe that magic air. But to think of Florence just as the cradle of painting, sculpture and architecture is limiting.

Modern science (the one based on experimentation) was born in Florence with Galileo Galilei, who came from Pisa, but grew up and worked in Florence under the patronage of the Medici.

And the opera can be considered Florentine as well.

Until almost the end of 1500 there was the madrigal: a mix of dance, poetry, drama and songs that usually was represented in private homes.

In 1589 on the occasion of the marriage of Ferdinand II Medici to Vittoria della Rovere something new is represented on the scene: The Pilgrim. A work that was partially sung and spoken, with only occasional moments dedicated to the orchestra.

Immediately after, in 1590, the Camerata dei Bardi was founded. It was formed  by a group of friends including musicians and poets, and their purpose was to revive classic Greek tragedy with music, developing a new method that favored the sweetness of the instrument’s sound rather than the numerical relationships between notes that was taught and followed at the time.

Jacopo Peri, a musician inspired by their work, composed in 1594 Dafne (whose text and music got lost) and in 1600, Euridice, in order to celebrate the wedding of Maria de Medici to the King of France, Henry IV.

This is considered the first opera, as we use to know it nowadays and it was obviously performed in Florence, inside the Palazzo Pitti, the Medici’s house at that time.

Travel tips:
If you wish to watch an opera in Florence have a look to the calendar of the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino (the city theatre). But you could also buy a ticket for the Saint Mark’s English Church, a beautiful and intimate setting, where you seat only a few metres away from the performers, enthralled by the dramatic stories unfolding before you. With an English explanation of the opera at the beginning, and programme notes in Italian, English, French and German. An amazing experience!