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| puccini | |
| 1858 births | |
| 1924 deaths | |
| 20th century classical composers | |
| italian composers | |
| italian opera composers | |
| people from lucca | |
| romantic composers | |
| throat cancer deaths | |
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Giacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini ( December 22 , 1858 – November 29 , 1924 ) is regarded as one of the great Operatic Composers of the late 19th and early 20th century. LIFE Puccini was born in Lucca , Italy into a family with a long history of music. After the death of his father when he was only five years old, he was sent to study with his uncle Fortunato Magi , who considered him to be a poor and undisciplined student. Later, he took the position of church organist and choir master, but it was not until he saw a performance of Verdi 's '' Aida '' that he became inspired to be an opera composer. He and a friend walked an entire 13 miles to see the performance in Pisa. In 1880, the ''Messa di Gloria (Gloria Mass -- note: the "gloria" mass, more common with Italian liturgical composers than others, only sets the opening two prayers of the Catholic Mass, the Kyrie and the Gloria. Previous examples are Rossini's of 1823, and the extensive "Gloria" settings by Vivaldi)'', composed at the age of 21, marked the end of Puccini's apprenticeship as a composer and the culmination of his family's long association with Church Music in his native Lucca. The work offers fascinating glimpses of the dramatic power that Puccini was soon to unleash on Milan's stages. The orchestration and the overall feeling of drama conveyed by his music establish a dialogue with Verdi's Requiem and perhaps already constitute a prediction of the future operatic career Puccini would embrace for life. From 1880 to 1883 he studied at the Milan Conservatory under Amilcare Ponchielli and Antonio Bazzini . In 1882 , Puccini entered a competition for a one-act opera. Although he did not win, '' Le Villi '' was later staged in 1884 at the Teatro dal Verme; it also caught the attention of Giulio Ricordi , head of G. Ricordi & Co. music publishers, who commissioned a second opera, '' Edgar '' ( 1889 ). From 1891 on, Puccini passed more and more of his time at Torre Del Lago , in the Tuscan countryside. In this place on the border of the Massaciuccoli lake, where he passed lots of time hunting, he found refuge from the crowded city. Later he built a villa and moved there definitively in 1900. It was to remain his home and workplace until the very last years of his life. He is buried in the villa's chapel. '' Manon Lescaut '' (1893), his third opera, was a great success> It launched his remarkable relationship with the Librettests Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa , who collaborated with him on his next three operas:
Composition was slow after this. In 1903 Puccini was injured in an automobile accident. In 1906, Giacosa died. In 1909, there was scandal after Puccini's wife, Elvira, falsely accused their maid Doria Manfredi of having an affair with Puccini. The maid then committed Suicide . Elvira was successfully sued by the Manfredis and Giacomo had to pay damages. And in 1912, Puccini's editor, Giulio Ricordi, who had a very important role in the rising of his carier, died. Nonetheless, in 1910, Puccini completed '' La Fanciulla Del West '', which he later on thought of as his most powerful opera, and, in 1917, finished the score of '' La Rondine '', a piece he reworked from an operetta he had attempted to compose only to find that his style and talent were incompatible with the genre. In ''), in the style of the Parisian Grand Guignol , a sentimental tragedy ('' Suor Angelica '') and a comedy or farce ('' Gianni Schicchi ''). Of the three, ''Gianni Schicchi'' is the most popular. A habitual chain smoker of cigarettes, Puccini began to complain of chronic sore throats towards the end of 1923. A diagnosis of throat cancer led his doctors to recommend a new and experimental treatment called . MUSIC Although Puccini is mainly known for his operas, he also wrote some orchestral pieces, sacred music, chamber music and songs for voice and piano. Puccini's operas
Puccini's works and versions
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