Giovanni Luca Conforti
Giovanni Luca Conforti (1560 – May 11, 1608) was an Italian composer and prominent falsetto singer who wrote an exercise book about Baroque embellishments, Breve et facile maniera d'essercitarsi ad ogni scolaro or Brief and easy manner of exercising for every student, still in use today. Biography Conforti, also spelled Conforto, was born in Mileto, Calabria, around 1560. He sang in the Papal chapel from 1580 to October 31, 1585. He and several of his colleagues were expelled for joining the Congregazione dei Musici di Roma, membership of which was forbidden to papal singers, though he was later allowed to rejoin. In 1586, he was reportedly serving the Duke of Sessa when Cardinal Scipione Gonzaga and protonotary Camillo Capilupi recommended him for service at the court of Mantua, and in the letters they provide descriptions of Conforti's voice and style. When Capilupi heard him sing Lenten music at Santa Trinità, he proclaimed him the best falsettist in Rome, praising Conforti's resonance, improvization, and ornamentation. Cardinal Gonzaga's letters say Conforti sang both contralto and soprano skillfully, the first with a full voice, and the latter with a sweet tone. His skill came to impress many, and he was considered a prominent