The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2001-07.
Carissimi, Giacomo
(jä´km kärs´sm) (KEY) , 160574, Italian composer. Most of his life was spent in Rome, where he wrote chamber cantatas in a style that lasted for over a century. His Latin oratorios, of which Jephtha is best known, are among the earliest extant examples of true oratorio. Famous as a teacher, he had among his pupils Alessandro Scarlatti.