Baroni, Leonora (1611–1670)

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Baroni, Leonora (1611–1670)

Italian singer. Born in 1611; died in 1670; daughter of Adriana Basile (an Italian singer) and Mutio Baroni; sister of Caterina Baroni (1620–?).

Leonora Baroni, daughter of famed Italian singer Adriana Basile , followed in her mother's footsteps, becoming a famous singer in Italy and France. She was often accompanied by her mother on the theorbo while her sister Caterina Baroni played the harp. When John Milton heard Baroni's magnificent voice, he was so moved that he composed three Latin epigrams for her; in one of them, the poet compared her to Tasso's Leonora, "for the mad love of whom, he walked raging in the world."

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