Teatro La Fenice ("The Phoenix") is an opera house in Venice, Italy. It is one of the most famous theatres in Europe, the site of many famous operatic premieres. Its name reflects its role in permitting an opera company to "rise from the ashes" despite losing the use of two theatres (to fire and legal problems respectively). Since opening and being named La Fenice, it has burned and been rebuilt twice more.

In 1774, the San Benedetto Theatre, which had been Venice's leading opera house for more than forty years, burned to the ground. No sooner had it been rebuilt than a legal dispute broke out between the company managing it and the owners, the Venier family. The issue was decided in favor of the Veniers.

The construction began in June 1790, and by May 1792 the theatre was completed. It was named "La Fenice", in reference to the company's survival, first of the fire, then of the loss of its former quarters. La Fenice was inaugurated on May 16, 1792 with an opera by Giovanni Paisiello entitled I Giuochi di Agrigento (libretto by count Alessandro Pepoli).

Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (Italian pronunciation: [dʒuˈzɛppe ˈverdi]; 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian Romantic composer, mainly of opera. He was one of the most influential composers of the 19th century. His works are frequently performed in opera houses throughout the world and, transcending the boundaries of the genre, some of his themes have long since taken root in popular culture – such as "La donna è mobile" from Rigoletto, "Va, pensiero" (The Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves) from Nabucco, "Libiamo ne' lieti calici" (The Drinking Song) from La traviata and the "Grand March" from Aida.

Verdi’s masterworks dominate the standard opera repertoire a century and a half after their composition.

Verdi was born the son of Carlo Giuseppe Verdi and Luigia Uttini in Le Roncole, a village near Busseto, then in the Département Taro which was a part of the First French Empire after the annexation of the Duchy of Parma and Piacenza. The baptismal register, on 11 October lists him as being "born yesterday", but since days were often considered to begin at sunset, this could have meant either 9 or 10 October. The next day, he was baptized in the Roman Catholic Church in Latin as Joseph Fortuninus Franciscus. The day after that (Tuesday), Verdi's father took his newborn the three miles to Busseto, where the baby was recorded as Joseph Fortunin François; the clerk wrote in French. "So it happened that for the civil and temporal world Verdi was born a Frenchman."

Claudio Giovanni Antonio Monteverdi (Italian pronunciation: [ˈklaudjo monteˈverdi]; 15 May 1567 (baptized) – 29 November 1643) was an Italian composer, gambist, and singer.

Monteverdi's work, often regarded as revolutionary, marked the transition from the Renaissance style of music to that of the Baroque period. He developed two individual styles of composition – the heritage of Renaissance polyphony and the new basso continuo technique of the Baroque. Monteverdi wrote one of the earliest operas, L'Orfeo, an innovative work that is still regularly performed. He was recognized as an innovative composer and enjoyed considerable fame in his lifetime.

Claudio Monteverdi was born in 1567 in Cremona, a town in Northern Italy. His father was Baldassare Monteverdi, a doctor, apothecary and surgeon. He was the oldest of five children. During his childhood, he was taught by Marc'Antonio Ingegneri, the maestro di cappella at the Cathedral of Cremona. The Maestro di capella’s job was to conduct important worship services in accordance with the liturgy books of the Catholic Church. Monteverdi learned about music by being part of the cathedral choir. He also studied at the University of Cremona. His first music was written for publication, including some motets and sacred madrigals, in 1582 and 1583. His first five publications were: Sacrae cantiunculae, 1582 (collection of miniature motets); Madrigali Spirituali, 1583 (a volume of which only the bass partbook is extant); Canzonette a tre voci, 1584 (a collection of three-voice canzonettes); and the five-part madrigals Book I, 1587, and Book II, 1590. Monteverdi worked for the court of Mantua first as a singer and violist, then as music director. He worked at the court of Vincenzo I of Gonzaga in Mantua as a vocalist and viol player. In 1602, he was working as the court conductor.

Jean Tubéry (born Toulouse) is a French player of the cornett (Italian cornetto) and conductor. He is noted for being, along with his own teacher Bruce Dickey and his colleague Jean-Pierre Canihac, one of the main cornett players to resurrect the baroque instrument, cornet à bouquin, as part of the historically informed performance movement and early music revival.

Tubéry originally studied recorder at his home town Toulouse and then at the Amsterdam Conservatory, but decided to switch to cornet and undertook studies with Bruce Dickey at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis. During the 1980s and 1990s he performed with almost all of the well known early music ensembles of the period including Les Arts Florissants under William Christie, La Petite Bande under Sigiswald Kuijken, the Clemencic Consort of René Clemencic, Hesperion XXI under Jordi Savall, as well as the Ensemble Clément Janequin of Dominique Visse, Collegium Vocale de Gand for Philippe Herreweghe, Concerto Vocale of René Jacobs, the Huelgas Ensemble of Paul Van Nevel, Cantus Cölln and Konrad Junghänel, The Ensemble Elyma of Gabriel Garrido and so on.

Carmen Giannattasio is an Italian operatic soprano. In 2002 she won first and audience prize at Operalia competition in Paris.

She has recorded with OPERA RARA: La donna del lago by Gioacchino Rossini, Parisina d'Este by Gaetano Donizetti, Ermione by Gioacchino Rossini and Il Pirata by Vincenzo Bellini. She has also recorded Maometto II by Rossini, Simon Boccanegra and Requiem by Giuseppe Verdi, Il Marito Disperato by Cimarosa, Ugo conte di Parigi by Gaetano Donizetti.