Historical Dictionary of Opera - Scott L. Balthazar - Google Books

http://books.google.de/books?id=FeoQAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA251&lpg=PA251&dq=%22Michelangelo+Faggioli%22+1666&source=bl&ots=n409r5Unot&sig

Opera has been around ever since the late 16th century, and it is still going strong in the sense that operas are performed around the world at present, and known by infinitely more persons than just those who attend performances. On the other hand, it has…