Historical approach to the opera’s libretto-theme in Italy from the end of the 16th century to the first Italian reform

Abstract

The creators of opera in Italy at the end of the 16th century gave great importance to the choice of their subject matter in order to reproduce an overall work of art according to the archetype of ancient Greek tragedy. During its progressive course, opera underwent changes, in which libretto and its subject matter constituted major issues of study and criticism and were reformed according to the style of each period but always with quality as a keystone. The present study examines the formation of the Italian opera based on the choice of the librettos from its birth to the first Italian reform.