Italian composer and organist (1567-1643), seen by many as the inventor of opera after L'Orfeo in 1607. Originally from Cremona, he first entered the service of the Duke of Mantua, for whom he composed books of madrigals and his Vespres à la Vierge. In 1613 he was appointed chapel master at Saint Mark's Basilica in Venice where he composed sacred music.
