This revised English edition of Monteverdi's correspondence contains all his known letters and places them within the context of his life and works. Dating from the last forty-two years of his career, the 127 letters paint a vivid picture of artistic life in Mantua, Venice, and Parma at one of the most crucial periods in music history. The time-span, in this new edition, also covers the composer's early years in Cremona and Mantua, and coincides with the flowering of Italian opera and instrumental music. Monteverdi has much to say about the aesthetics of Stage production and meticulously describes his patrons, librettists, instrumentalists, and singers. He also writes about the harsh realities of a life in which the daily round might include a robbery at gunpoint or threats from the Inquisitor.