About the work
Pastoral play (favola pastorale) in five acts by Torquato Tasso, first performed on 23 March 1573 on the river island of Belvedere near Ferrara before the court of Alfonso II d'Este. Tasso wrote the piece during his years as court poet in Ferrara; it was first printed in 1580.
Plot
The shepherd Aminta loves the aloof nymph Silvia, who prefers hunting to love. When a satyr assaults her, Aminta rescues her just in time; a false report of Silvia's death then drives him to attempt suicide, which he barely survives. Moved by his devotion, Silvia finally returns his love.
Cultural significance
Aminta is regarded as one of the defining works of Italian pastoral poetry and decisively shaped European pastoral drama in the following centuries, including Giovanni Battista Guarini's "Il pastor fido." It reflects the courtly idyll of Ferrara, which Tasso later recalled as the happiest period of his life.