Giovanni Faustini

Giovanni Faustini ( born May 19, 1615 Venice, † December 19, 1651 ) was an Italian opera librettist and opera impresario. Many of his opera libretti were set to music by composer Francesco Cavalli.

Life and work

Giovanni Faustini was in Venice impresario at the Teatro San Cassiano ( the first public opera house opened in 1637 ), Teatro San Moise ( 1639 based) and the Teatro San Apollinare (which he anmietete with two business partners from 1650 for his opera productions ). Of his 14 libretti most were set to music by Cavalli - eleven were written just for him. Most of them were based on a plot of the type: two pairs of noble lovers from distant nations at different stages of separation and recovery, assisted by servants in comic roles. Elements of the plot were as in the former novels such as Potions, confusion caused by misdirected letters, cladding. Only three of his librettos based on mythological motifs ( inter alia La Calisto ). With Cavalli he formed the most successful Opern-Komponisten-/-Librettisten-Duo in the former Venice of the 1640s, where developed the genre of opera in the modern sense after Monteverdi's death. The opera experiencing at the time in Venice favor, such as the establishment of numerous competing opera houses shows. Shortly after the premiere of La Calisto ( for which he wrote the libretto, Cavalli music ) he died in late 1651. The management was continued by his brother Marco, who after a successful impresario was in the decade.

Faustini had an important role in the development of Venetian opera, who dared to his and Cavalli's time to transition from farm events or performances against a lover circles in commercial, public opera houses. This was also reflected in the libretti that has picked up contemporary popular fiction and elements of the commedia dell'arte.