Giacomo Puccini. Interesting Facts

Italian composerGiacomo Pucciniborn December 22, 1858 in the city of Lukka in a musician's family.

A descendant of an old family of musicians, the fifth of seven brothers, Giacomo Puccini lost his father at the age of six, the organist of the regent of the Lucca Cathedral. He studied at the local Pacini Institute and at the Milan Conservatory (with Ponchielli and Bazzini). In Milan he performed his first opera "Willis", which was a great success. The opera Manon Lescaut received an even greater resonance in Turin in 1893. This was followed by an affair with Elvira Bonturi in Gemignani, who only after the death of her husband in 1904 legalized her relationship with Puccini - this relationship was strong, despite the composer’s numerous love interests. Since 1891, Puccini has lived in Torre del Lago and the surrounding area, where his other famous operas were born. Giacomo Puccini achieved international fame, withstood the attacks of national criticism caused by his speech against the First World War, and made numerous trips abroad, including in search of material for his works.

The first two operas:"The Jeeps" (1884), based on a story by Heine, and "Edgar" (1889), Milan - traditional romantic plots developed by the librettist Fontana were little suited to Puccini's creative individuality. Nevertheless, the premiere of “Willis” at the Dal Verme Theater made the aspiring author famous in Milanese musical circles. Critics wrote about the presence in the opera of a number of vivid dramatic scenes and lyrical episodes, distinguished by melodic richness. Compositethe publisher Ricordi became interested in rum, and becamepatron and friend.

“Manon Lescaut” (1893), Turin, libretto by Illica, Oliva, Prague, Riccordi based on Prevost’s novel “The History of the Chevalier de Grieux and Manon Lescaut” differs from Puccini’s first operas in its greater dramatic integrity and variety of musical language. The main means of expressiveness is melody - melodious, flexible, rich in ritmicically. At the center of the opera are lyrical scenes related to the characteristics of the main characters, conveying their feelings and moods. After the triumphant Turin premiere on February 1, 1893, Manon Lescaut quickly won the sympathy of listeners far beyond the borders of Italy.
"La Bohème" - 1896, Turin, libretto by Illica and Giacosa based on Murger's story "Scenes from the Life of Bohemia" - ea masterpiece that might not have been born. The fact is that the composer’s friend Ruggero Leoncavallo has already begun to compose an opera on the same plot. In one of the Milan cafes, when Puccini told Leoncavallo that he also liked this story, a quarrel breaks out between friends. But Puccini’s stubbornness and determination were so great that he broke with his colleague, but did not give up his intention. Leoncavallo's opera appeared a year later, but could not withstand comparison with Puccini's work.

The libretto differs in many ways from Murget’s acclaimed novel, published in 1851. If in the original source the narration is narrated by an ironic, detached observer (which is reflected in the title of the “scene”), then in the opera everything sounds more lyrical and intimate. The image of the heroine combined the features of the heroines of the novel - the typical Parisian midinet Mimi and the charming heroine of the story “Francine's Muff”.

The entire large lyrical scene of the introduction of the main characters in the 1st act, consisting of 2 arias of Rudolf and Mimi (“Che gelida manina” and “Mi chiamano Mimi”) and their duet framing, is an absolute melodic masterpiece. The opera also has a number of brightest melodic episodes - Musetta's waltz from the 2nd act, the touching aria episode of Collen's "farewell to the cloak" "Vecchia zimara, senti" from the 4th. The final scene of the heroine’s death cannot leave anyone indifferent.

The rather restrained reception at the premiere (typical of many innovative works) quickly grew into success, and success is not fleeting and accidental, but lasting and unconditional.

The premiere performance of La Boheme was conducted by Arturo Toscanini, with whom the composer subsequently had a strong creative friendship. Opera soon crossed the borders of Italy. Already in 1897, the English premiere took place in Manchester, the German one at the Berlin Krol Opera, the Austrian one at the Theater an der Wien, and the American one in Los Angeles.In the same year, La Boheme was performed on the Russian stage at Mamontov’s Moscow Private Russian Opera (Tsvetkova and Sekar-Rozhansky were occupied in the main roles). Tsvetkova was a wonderful interpreter of the image of Mimi. According to Chaliapin's wife, the great singer cried at the dress rehearsal of the opera during the final scene. Among the Russian productions of the beginning of the century, the premiere of 1911 in BT should be especially noted. This performance was Sobinov's only directorial work; he also performed the role of Rudolf, and the wonderful singer Nezhdanova performed the role of Mimi.

"Tosca" - libretto by Giacosa and Illica based on the drama by Sardou. The premiere of Tosca took place in Rome on January 14, 1900. The operaPucciniwas raised by supporters of the veristic movement, who were attracted by the frantic drama of individual scenes. But this is not what determined the success of Tosca among the public—it was the beautiful, expressive music, inextricably linked with the action, that captivated the audience. In one year, Tosca bypassed the largest theaters.

The final act begins quietly enough. Behind the stage, the early morning song of a shepherd boy sounds. The scene of this action is the roof of the prison castle of Sant'Angelo in Rome, where Cavaradossi is to be brought for execution. He is given a short time to prepare for death. He writes his last letter to his beloved Tosca and sings the heartbreaking aria “E lucevan le stelle” (“The stars were burning in the sky”).

Tosca appears and shows him the saving passes that she managed to obtain from Scarpia. Tosca tells Cavaradossi how she killed the treacherous police chief; and the lovers sing a passionate duet, anticipating their happy future. Tosca explains thatto escapeCavaradossi must undergo the farce of a false execution.A calculation led by Spoletta appears. Mario stands in front of him. They're shooting. He falls. The soldiers are leaving. Melancholy falls on the body of her murdered lover. Only now does she realize that Scarpia insidiously deceived her: the cartridges were real, and Cavaradossi lies dead. Sobbing over the corpse of Cavaradossi, the young woman does not hear the footsteps of the returning soldiers: they discovered that Scarpia had been killed. Spoletta tries to grab Tosca, but she pushes him away, jumps onto the parapet and throws herself from the roof of the castle. While the farewell motive of Mario's dying aria thunders in the orchestra, the soldiers stand frozen in horror.

Maria Callas. Madama Butterfly.

"Madama Butterfly" (1904) Milan, libretto by Illica and Giacosa based on the drama by Belasco.

The success of Madama Butterfly strengthened Puccini's worldwide fame. His operas are staged everywhere, his name is pronounced next to the names of major composers.

“How do the Indians sing?” — the composer asked himself after watching Belasco’s drama “The Girl from the Golden West” about the life of Californian gold minersin NYC. In the opera based on this plot, Puccini continues the line of “Tosca” - in it the influence of veristic tendencies appeared even more clearly."The Girl from the West" - libretto by Civinnini and Zangarini based on the drama by Belasco.The premiere in New York on December 10, 1910 was a sensation.What the author did best were the strong dramatic scenes in which the characters of the main characters, Minnie and Johnson, were revealed; tense melodic declamation predominates here.A significant place is given to genre episodes in which, thanks to jazz elements subtly woven into the music, intonations and rhythms of Negro and Indian folklore, the peculiar life of the “wild West” is vividly captured.

The second decade of the 20th century was difficult for Puccini. The oppressive situation of the First World War weakened his creative activity. Lyrical comedy« Swallow" (1914-16) did not become a major artistic achievement of the composer.

After going through many different subjects (including works of Russian literature - L. Tolstoy, Gorky), Puccini came up with the idea of ​​​​creating a triptych - a cycle consisting of three operas contrasting with each other.

Giacomo Puccini(1858-1924) - perhaps the most popular opera composer of the turn of the 19th - 20th centuries, the last great master of Italian opera bel canto. His name invariably appears among the most frequently performed authors, and his operas have long been included in the collection of world opera classics. The artistic fate of many famous singers (E. Caruso, B. Gigli, T. Ruffa, M. Callas, L. Pavarotti and many other performers) is closely connected with them.

Puccini's intense creative activity lasted 40 years - from the naively imitative "Willis" (1884) to the remaining unfinished "Turandot" (1924). Its most important period is the middle - the turn of the century, when in ten years (1895-1905) the composer's most repertoire operas were born: , (in Russia it is more often called “Chio-Chio-san”). The librettos of all three named operas, as well as the one that preceded them, Manon Lescaut, were written by the writers Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa.

The creative image of the young Puccini was formed in the era when Italian musical theater was established verism. Certain trends characteristic of this direction were developed in a number of the composer’s operas. The simple melodrama of life was always closer to him than sublime heroics or history.

Gravitating towards sadly fragile female images, Puccini was not afraid of melodramatic situations. At the center of many of his operas is the image of a suffering young woman, the collapse of her hopes for happiness and tragic death (an archetype associated with). However, in the interpretation of such subjects, Puccini invariably shows a great sense of proportion and tact. Compared to the classic examples of verism (“Honor Rusticana”, “Pagliacci”) they are embodied by more subtle and varied means. Strictly speaking, only one of Puccini’s later works - “The Cloak” from the “Triptych” cycle (1916) - fully corresponds to the canon of veristic drama, both from the plot and from the musical side. The events of this opera take place on a barge cruising along the Seine. As the plot develops, a stern husband kills the lover of his young, frivolous wife (clear similarities with Pagliacci).

In most of the composer’s other operas, either a romantic story is told in Verist language (“Tosca”), or a plot taken from non-romantic literature is interpreted romantically (“Manon Lescaut”, “Turandot”), or a romantic coloring is given to modern, but not Verist material (“Madama Butterfly”, “The Girl from the West”).

Despite the noticeable stylistic evolution experienced by the composer over forty years, the main features of his author’s style remained unshakable:

• an innate sense of theater, a gravitation towards effective, concise, fascinating dramaturgy, capable of exciting and touching hearts;
• melodic richness (it is no coincidence that Verdi called Puccini “the guardian of the seal of Italian melody”);
• a special “mixed” style of vocal melody, combining a chanted operatic cantilena with dramatic or everyday recitation, as well as elements of modern songwriting.
• rejection of extended multi-part arias and other large operatic forms in favor of continuous, naturally developing scenes;
• with the closest attention to the orchestral part - the constant hegemony of the singing actors.

A direct heir to the traditions of the late Verdi, Puccini consistently mastered and creatively implemented various achievements of European music. These are symphonized forms

Giacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini (Italian: Giacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini; December 22, 1858, Lucca - November 29, 1924, Brussels) is an Italian opera composer, one of the prominent representatives of the “verismo” movement in music. The greatest opera composer after Verdi. After the death of G. Puccini, Italian opera lost its leadership.

Giacomo was born in Lucca, into a musical family. At the age of five, the boy was sent to be raised and educated by his uncle. Uncle Giacomo considered his pupil a bad student. He gave him a kick in the shin for every false note. Later, Giacomo reflexively experienced pain in his shin if he heard a false note.

Giacomo studied for four years at the Milan Conservatory. Upon completion, he took part in a competition to write a one-act opera. He wrote the opera "Willis", but did not receive a prize. However, the publisher who financed the opera was delighted. The publisher Ricordi signed a contract with Giacomo to compose a five-act opera. Puccini writes the opera Edgar. Critics speak well of it, and the public liked it. After this event, Ricordi and Puccini collaborated constantly.

The next opera that Giacomo wrote was called Manon Lescaut. It triumphantly took place not only on the stages of theaters in Italy, but also in France. Puccini then wrote a number of operas that remain classics to this day. First of all, these are La bohème, written in 1896, and Tosca (1900). The latter brought real fame to the composer. She does not leave theater stages even today. In 1904 he wrote the opera “Chio-chio-san”, and in 1910 - “The Girl from the West”.

The last opera that the composer wrote is called Turandot. Puccini worked on this opera while already hopelessly ill. Despite the fact that Giacomo was in a hurry, he did not have time to finish the last scene of the opera. The opera was completed by his student Alfano, based on the composer's surviving sketches. Turandot premiered in Milan in 1926. Arturo Toscanini conducted then. When the last chords written by Giacomo sounded, Toscanini lowered his baton and said: “Here death snatched the pen from the maestro’s hand.”

The great composer died in 1924 in a clinic due to throat surgery. Puccini's music has always been full of emotions. He is remembered by everyone as the creator of beautiful operas that have become classics, but he also wrote symphonic music. Shortly before his death, the composer once said one important thing that people are still trying to forget: “opera ended as a genre because people have lost the taste for melody and are ready to tolerate musical compositions that do not contain anything melodic.”

Date of birth: December 22, 1858
Place of birth: Lucca
Country: Italy
Date of death: November 29, 1924

Giacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini (Italian: Giacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini) is a great Italian opera composer.

Puccini was born in the city of Lucca, into a musical family. Five-year-old Puccini was sent to apprentice with his uncle Fortunato Maggi. Subsequently, Puccini received the position of church organist and choirmaster. He wanted to become an opera composer when he first heard a performance of Giuseppe Verdi's opera Aida in Pisa.

For four years, Puccini studied at the Milan Conservatory. In 1882 he took part in a competition of one-act operas. His opera "Willis" was staged in 1884 at the Teatro dal Verme and attracted the attention of Giulio Ricordi, the head of an influential publishing house specializing in the publication of scores. Ricordi ordered Puccini a new opera, Edgar.

His third opera, Manon Lescaut, completed in 1893, was a huge success. This same opera marks the beginning of Puccini's work with librettists Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa.

Puccini's next opera, La Bohème (based on the novel by Henri Murget), brought Puccini worldwide fame.

La Boheme was followed by Tosca, which premiered at the turn of the century in 1900.

On February 17, 1904, at the Teatro alla Scala in Milan, Giacomo Puccini presented his new opera Madama Butterfly (based on the play by David Belasco). Despite the participation of outstanding singers Rosina Storchio, Giovanni Zenatello, Giuseppe De Luca, the performance was a failure. Friends persuaded Puccini to rework his work and invite Solomea Krushelnitskaya to play the main role. On May 29, the premiere of the updated “Madama Butterfly” took place on the stage of the Grande Theater in Brescia, this time a triumph. The audience called the actors and composer to the stage seven times.

After this, new operas began to appear less frequently. In 1910, Puccini completed the opera “The Girl from the West,” which he later described as his most powerful work. An attempt to write an operetta (obviously due to the incredible popularity of the genre at that time) ended in failure. In 1917, Puccini completed the reworking of his operetta into the opera “Swallow”.

In 1918, the premiere of the opera “Triptych” took place. This work consists of three one-act operas (in the Parisian grand guignol style: horror, sentimental tragedy and farce. The last, farcical part, called "Gianni Schicchi", has gained fame and is sometimes performed on the same evening with Mascagni's opera "La Rural Honor" , or with Leoncavallo’s opera “Pagliacci”.

Puccini died in 1924 in a Brussels clinic. The last act of his last opera (Turandot) remained unfinished. There are several versions of the ending, the version written by Franco Alfano is most often performed. At the premiere of this opera, the conductor, a close friend of the composer, Arturo Toscanini stopped the orchestra at the place where the part written by Alfano began. Having laid down his baton, the conductor turned to the audience and said, “Here the opera ends, because at that moment the maestro died.”

Extraordinarily gifted melodically, Puccini firmly adhered to his conviction that music and action in opera should be inseparable. Thanks to the richness of their melodies, Puccini's operas, along with those of Verdi and Wagner, are the most frequently performed operas in the world. It is rare that an opera house today decides to compile a season's repertoire without including at least one work by this composer.

The outstanding Italian composer Giacomo Puccini was a hereditary musician. For two centuries, this profession was passed down in the Puccini family from generation to generation. Giacomo received his name in honor of his great-great-grandfather, the first composer in their family. The boy was destined to glorify Puccini's galaxy of musicians. And he did this with his operas “Tosca”, “Cio-Cio-San”, “La Boheme”, “Turandot”.

Puccini. Yearning

While working on the opera “La Bohème,” a peculiar circle of Puccini’s friends was formed, called the “Bohemian Club.” In the evenings, the composer and his comrades gathered in a forest hut by the light of kerosene lamps, played cards or told funny stories. There was also a piano here, and often the owner, in the presence of his partners, took up the work that fascinated him, asking their advice on this or that musical detail.

Everything was fine, but the hunting season came, and at dawn the composer often went to the lake with a double-barreled shotgun over his shoulders, instead of sitting down at the piano. This caused concern for the publisher of the future opera and especially for the maestro’s wife. To escape her reproaches, the composer resorted to tricks: once he specially invited a certain young pianist, who, to divert his attention, had to play melodies from La Bohème in the morning, while Puccini himself disappeared hunting.

One day a young acquaintance of the composer Puccini, a very mediocre musician, said:

You're already old, Giacomo. Perhaps I’ll write a funeral march for your funeral and, so as not to be late, I’ll start tomorrow.

Well, write,” Puccini sighed. “I’m only afraid that this will be the first time a funeral is booed.”

Giacomo Puccini was a great optimist. One day he broke his leg and was hospitalized. A couple of days later his friends visited him. After greeting, Puccini said cheerfully:

I'm so happy friends! They have already begun to build a monument to me!

Don't talk nonsense, what kind of stupid jokes are these?!

“I’m not joking at all,” the composer answered and showed his leg in a cast.

Puccini was a great wit and never minced words.

One day, one of his close acquaintances - a very mediocre composer - decided to joke and said to Puccini:

Giacomo, you are already old. Perhaps I’ll write a funeral march for your funeral!

Well, write,” Puccini agreed. - But you’re lazy, you don’t like to work, I’m afraid you won’t have time...

“And so as not to be late, I’ll start tomorrow,” the friend responded sarcastically.

I wish you good luck,” Puccini nodded, “and I think you will become famous.”

Do you think so?

“I have no doubt,” answered the maestro. - After all, this will be the first time in history that a funeral will be booed!

One day, having learned about the arrival of a young, unknown and, of course, poor composer in the city, the friendly and hospitable Puccini went to his hotel and, not finding the owner, left an inscription on the door: “Dear Mr. Musician, I humbly ask you to come to me for dinner tomorrow ". The young man did not keep himself waiting - the acquaintance took place, and the dinner was very pleasant.

However, when the next day Puccini saw a new acquaintance at his dinner table, he was somewhat surprised... For a week the young man - every day! - as if going to work, he showed up for lunch with the maestro. Annoyed by this impudence, Puccini finally told him:

Your constant visits, my dear, are extremely pleasant for me, but still I am somewhat surprised that you allow them to yourself without any invitations from me.

Ah, maestro, I am so grateful to you! - the guest exclaimed.

I don't understand anything! Finally, explain why?

Every day, returning to the hotel, I read on the door the invitation inscribed by your noble hand. I can't erase it because I keep it as a precious autograph. And I also cannot help but show up at your house for dinner: after all, inviting such a famous and wonderful composer is a law for a poor musician!..

One day a young composer asked Puccini:

What do you think about my opera "The Desert"?

The opera is not bad,” I responded to Puccini with a smile, “but if I were you, I would give it the name “Boulevard.” Acquaintances at every step.

After reading another abusive article about himself, Puccini usually said:

Let the fools rage. The applause at my operas weighs much more than the scolding of all the critics!

8. invitation accepted

Once the maestro dined with a lady who was so thrifty that he had to leave the table completely hungry. The hostess kindly said to Puccini:

I ask you to come and dine with me some other time.

“With pleasure,” answered Puccini, “even now!”

One day, sitting in the theater, Puccini said into his friend’s ear:

The singer performing the main part is incredibly bad. I have never heard such terrible singing in my life!

Then maybe it's better to go home? - suggested a friend.

What are you saying, under no circumstances! I know this opera - in the third act the heroine must kill him. “I want to wait for this happy moment,” Puccini responded vindictively.

At the premiere at La Scala, the soloists sang listlessly and unexpressively. The tenor made a particularly sad impression. When it came to his aria, which began with the words “They threw me into a damp and cold dungeon,” the author of the opera leaned over to his neighbor and whispered in his ear:

It seems that they not only abandoned him, but also kept the poor guy there for a long time: he completely lost his voice!..

One day Puccini broke his leg. As worried friends rushed to visit him in hospital, Puccini cheerfully declared:

Don't worry so much, my dears! Everything is fine with me, and besides, I must proudly inform you that the construction of a monument to me has already begun.

You are very frivolous! - one of his friends began to scold him. - Tell us what happened to you, you can’t just joke all the time...

“I didn’t even think of joking,” Puccini answered with the most serious face, pointing to his plastered leg...

In Puccini's opera "Cio-Cio-san" there is an episode in which Sharpless, addressing the child Butterfly, asks: "Darling, what is your name?"

About ten years ago, in one of the Ukrainian theaters, the silent role of the child Cio-Cio-san was performed by the son of a costume designer. And then one day jokers from the theater pestered the boy:

Listen, darling, you’re already quite big, but you’re not doing well. Since your uncle asks you a question, you must answer him. You just need to say it loudly, clearly, at the top of your voice so that everyone can hear you.

The young creature coped brilliantly with her new role. When, at the next performance, Sharpless asked him a traditional question, the boy, taking a deep breath, loudly shouted: “Alyosha!” The success was phenomenal!

GIACOMO PUCCINI
biography

Giacomo Puccini(Giacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini (Italian: Giacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini)born December 22, 1858 in the city of Lucca, Tuscany, northern Italy. Puccini is a hereditary intellectual, the son and grandson of musicians. Giacomo’s great-grandfather, who lived in the same Lucca in the middle of the 18th century, was a famous church composer and conductor of the cathedral choir. Since then, all Puccinis - like the Bajas - have inherited the profession of composer and the title of “musician of the Republic of Lucca” from generation to generation. Father - Michele Puccini, who staged two of his operas and founded a music school in Lucca, was highly respected in the city. But when this gifted musician suddenly died, his 33-year-old widow Albina was left penniless with six small children.

According to family tradition and at the request of his father, it was he, the eldest boy in the family, who was supposed to receive a serious education as a composer. For a poor widow who had no income other than a penny pension, this was an almost impossible idea. But Albina Puccini-Maggi, who had amazing energy and acumen for life, did everything possible to fulfill the will of her late husband.

In little Lucca, the path to musical education was especially difficult. Young Giacomo sang the contralto part in the church choir and from the age of ten earned money by playing the organ in the church of the Benedictine Order. The art of the talented organist attracted the attention of parishioners, and he began to be invited to perform in other churches in Lucca and even other cities. Giacomo was lucky enough to get an intelligent and caring teacher - organist Carlo Angeloni. Within the walls of the Paccini Music Institute in Lucca, the young man became acquainted with the basics of harmony and instrumentation. Here he composed his first works, mainly choirs with religious content. In 1876, an event occurred that determined the fate of Puccini: he saw a production of Aida, the opera made a great impression on him, and that evening Giacomo firmly decided to become a composer and compose operas. However, during his years of study in Lucca, young Giacomo did not yet have the opportunity to try his hand at opera.

At the age of 22, Giacomo left his native Lucca, having received a diploma from the Paccini Institute. With the assistance of a local patron of the arts, his mother obtained a royal scholarship for him to enter the Milan Conservatory. Lucca relatives also provided a small monthly subsidy. Giacomo was accepted into the most famous conservatory in Italy, easily passing the entrance exam. Here he studied from 1880 to 1883 under the guidance of such major masters as the composer Amilcare Ponchielli and the violinist theorist Antonio Bazzini. Among Giacomo's colleagues at the Milan Conservatory was the son of Livorno baker Pietro Mascagni, who was soon destined to become the founder of verist opera. Mascagni and Puccini became close friends and shared the hardships of student life together.

The life of young Puccini in Milan was fraught with constant financial difficulties. A decade later, while working on La bohème, Puccini recalled with a smile the mischievous and beggarly days of his student youth.

The sensitive Ponchielli correctly recognized the nature of his student’s talent. Even during his years of study, he repeatedly told Giacomo that symphonic music was not his path and that he should work primarily in the operatic genre, so traditional for Italian composers. Puccini himself constantly dreamed of creating an opera, but for this it was necessary to obtain a libretto, and it cost a lot of money. Ponchielli came to the rescue, attracting the young poet-librettist Ferdinando Fontana, who had not yet gained fame and therefore did not claim high fees. Thus, in 1883, the year he graduated from the conservatory, Puccini had the opportunity to begin creating his first opera, “The Jeeps.” Subsequently, he recalled this with a smile in a letter to Giuseppe Adami:

“Many years ago, the Lord touched me with his little finger and said: “Write for the theater, only for the theater.” And I followed this higher advice.”

1883 was a landmark year in Puccini's life. This year he successfully graduated from the Milan Conservatory and for the first time acted as the author of an opera. "Jeeps" was presented on May 31, 1884 on the stage of Milan's Teatro Dal Verme. This operatic debut of the 25-year-old Puccini was very successful. His telegram addressed to his mother in Lucca reported: “The theater is full, unprecedented success... They called 18 times, the finale of the first film was encore three times.” But perhaps the most important result of Puccini's first operatic work was the establishment of a strong connection with the largest publisher Giulio Ricordi - a man with entrepreneurial scope and artistic flair. It can be argued that it was Ricordi who was one of the first to “discover” Puccini’s talent, recognizing the originality of his musical and dramatic inclinations through the immature forms of “Willis”.

The five years that passed between the premieres of “Willis” and “Edgar,” Puccini’s second opera, were perhaps the most difficult in the composer’s life. He was experiencing acute financial difficulties, faced with ruthless creditors. He was ready to follow his brother into emigrating from Italy if only his second opera failed. A heavy blow for the young man was the death of his mother, who did a lot for his musical development, but never lived to see the first triumphs of her beloved son.

Despite his dissatisfaction with Fontana's literary tastes, Puccini was forced to throw in his lot with this limited and old-fashioned librettist for the second time. After four years of hard work on a new opera, Puccini finally saw it staged at La Scala in Milan.

The premiere on April 21, 1889 was without much success. Critics sharply condemned the inconsistencies of the libretto, its pomposity and plot complexity. Even Ricordi, who always ardently defended the work of his ward, was forced to agree with these reproaches.

But Giacomo does not give up. The composer's attention is drawn to the dramatic plot of "Floria of Tosca" - a play by the popular French playwright Victorien Sardou. Having visited the play “Tosca” shortly after the premiere of “Edgar,” he immediately became interested in this topic. But the idea of ​​​​creating an opera of the same name had to be postponed for a whole decade. Finally, the search for a theme for a new opera was crowned with success: the plot of the French novel “Manon Lescaut” by Abbot Prevost seriously captured the composer’s creative imagination, serving as the basis for his first fully mature composition.

By this time, Puccini's financial situation had become more stable, the years of need and deprivation were left behind. Dissatisfied with the noisy atmosphere of Milan, he fulfills his old dream - he settles away from the city, in the quiet Torre del Lago - between Pisa and Viareggio. This place became the composer’s favorite refuge over the next three decades. He lives in a village house on the shores of Lake Massaciucoli, surrounded by beautiful nature. Here he has the opportunity to devote himself entirely to creativity, being distracted only by his favorite pastimes - hunting and fishing.

A significant role in Puccini’s life was played by his marriage to Elvira Bonturi, a temperamental and energetic woman who did everything possible to create ideal conditions for his creativity. For the sake of her chosen one, Elvira left her unloved husband - a Milanese bourgeois, the father of her two children. Only many years later, after the death of her legal husband, did she have the opportunity to formalize her marriage with Puccini. Their relationship was uneven: outbursts of great passion were replaced by quarrels and quarrels; but Elvira always remained the composer’s faithful friend and assistant, largely contributing to his success.

The years of work on Manon were the happiest period in Puccini's life. These were the years of his romantic infatuation with Elvira, the birth of their first child - son Antonio, years of joyful communication with the Tuscan nature close to his heart.

He composed the opera quickly, with extraordinary enthusiasm, and completed it in a year and a half (in the fall of 1892). Puccini wrote it either in Milan, then in Lucca, or in his beloved Torre del Lago.

In "Manon" Puccini showed himself as a mature playwright, putting forward quite conscious demands to his librettists. The tragic story of the provincial girl Manon Lescaut, who became the kept woman of a wealthy banker, is typical of European opera in the second half of the 19th century. But Puccini conceived his "Manon". He wanted to focus all his attention on the experiences of Manon and her lover. The musical dramaturgy of "Manon" in comparison with Puccini's two early operas is more flexible and more perfect. In this opera, Puccini's completely independent melodic style, closely connected with the traditions of modern Italian everyday song, finally took shape.

Puccini himself was very proud of Manon Lescaut. This was his “first love” - the only opera that easily won success. Until the end of his life, he considered “Manon” one of his favorite creations, his second “heartfelt affection” after “Madama Butterfly”.

The author of "Manon Lescaut" becomes the most famous musician in Italy. He is invited to teach a composition class at the Milan Conservatory and head the Lyceum Benedetto Marcello in Venice. But he rejects both offers, preferring the quiet life of a hermit in the quiet of Torre del Lago. A new successful find for Puccini was “Scenes from the Life of Bohemia” - a series of short stories by the French writer Henri Murget (1851). “I came across a plot that I am completely in love with,” the composer admitted. Even during the period of the first performances of “Manon,” Puccini, with his characteristic passion, began to develop a plan for the future “La Bohème.”

The music of La Bohème was written over the course of eight months, and some episodes, such as Musetta's most popular Waltz, were written by Puccini to his own text, without waiting for the next pages of the libretto. By the autumn of 1895, La Bohème was completed and on February 1, 1896, it was first presented on the stage of the Teatro Real in Turin.

Critics were not kind to Puccini's new opera. To the credit of the Italian public, it must be said that they quickly understood the merits of the new opera - despite the malicious attacks of reviewers. Even before the end of the season, La Bohème had run for 24 full-time performances - a fact unusual for a new opera. Very soon it was successfully staged by the largest theaters in the world, including theaters in London, Paris, Buenos Aires, Moscow, Berlin, Vienna, Budapest, and Barcelona. La Bohème caused an extraordinary sensation in Paris. French criticism raised it to the skies. La Bohème was shown at the Moscow Private Opera (Solodovnikov Theater) in January 1897 - less than a year after the Italian premiere.

Giacomo Puccini - La bohème (Russian subtitles)

Puccini's innovation was perhaps most directly and originally manifested in La Bohème. It was with this work that the composer made a radical turn in Italian opera from romantic frantic pathos to a modest embodiment of real everyday life.

While La Bohème was making its way onto European stages, Puccini was already completely captivated by a new operatic idea: the time had finally come to write Tosca, conceived back in the 1880s. Having barely had time to finish the score of La Bohème and submit it to the Turin theater, the composer and his wife rushed to Florence to again see Sardou’s drama with the famous Sarah Bernhardt in the role of Floria Tosca.

Already in the spring of 1896 - in between the noisy premieres of La Bohème - he began working on the libretto of a new opera. The music of Tosca was composed relatively easily - based on preliminary sketches and a detailed dramatic plan. The score was written from June 1898 to September 1899.

The premiere of Tosca took place in Rome on January 14, 1900 at the Costanzi Theater under the baton of conductor Leapoldo Muigone, a longtime friend of the composer and member of the Bohemian Club. The enthusiastic public called the author twenty-two times! The production of Tosca that same year in London was a wild success.

Puccini realized his dream, being already wise with the experience of his verist quests, he brought to this new score the wealth of leitmotif development, the courage of harmonic thinking, the flexibility and variety of declamatory techniques. The combination of bright theatricality, stage dynamism with the beauty and passion of lyrical chant ensured “Tosca” a long repertoire life.

In London, Puccini visited the Prince of York Theater, where the play “Geisha” by American playwright David Belasco was being performed. The composer found a new plot for himself. The tragic story of a young Japanese geisha immediately captured Puccini's imagination. Illica and Giacosa were again brought in and easily turned Belasco's melodrama into a two-act libretto called Madame Butterfly. Puccini was unusually touched by the sad fate of the little Japanese woman. Not a single opera image he had previously created was so close and dear to him.

The writing of Madama Butterfly dragged on for a long time - Puccini often had to travel to rehearsals and performances of his operas in various cities in Italy or abroad. In addition to his previous hobbies, another passion was added: he bought a car and became a real racer. The dangerous hobby ended sadly: in February 1903, in the midst of work on a new score, the composer had an accident and broke his leg.

At the end of 1903, the score was ready, and on February 17, 1904, “Madama Butterfly” saw the light of the stage at La Scala Theater in Milan. This time the premiere was unsuccessful. Whistles were heard in the hall, and the press responses expressed complete disappointment. After the adventurous and pointed plot of Tosca, the new opera seemed inactive and subduedly lyrical to the Milanese. The main reason for the semi-failure of “Butterfly” was considered to be the protracted nature of both acts, which was unusual for the Italian audience. Puccini made a new edition. The updated opera, staged in May 1904 at the Brescia Theater, won full recognition. From now on, "Madama Butterfly" began its victorious march through theaters in Europe and America.

The triumph of “Madama Butterfly” ended the most intense period of Puccini’s creative biography and began a period of depression that lasted almost a decade and a half. During these years, he was less productive, and what came from his pen - "The Girl from the West" (1910), "Swallow" (1917) - was inferior to the previously created masterpieces. The choice of opera plots became increasingly difficult for the aging master. His artistic instinct told him that it was necessary to look for new, untrodden paths, because the danger of repeating previously achieved stylistic discoveries was very great. Material security allowed the famous maestro not to rush to create his next opuses, and triumphant trips abroad and a passion for sports filled his time.

The last stage in Puccini's life (1919-1924) coincides with the period of post-war changes in the history of Italy. It can be argued that after The Swallow, Puccini decisively overcomes the protracted crisis. It was in these later years that he managed to reach new unsurpassed heights - write the operas “Gianni” and “Turandot”, enrich the Italian opera classics with new bright masterpieces. At the same time, the composer does not repeat his previous achievements, but finds untrodden paths; The deeply human but sentimental melodrama of La Boheme and Butterfly is replaced by the rich humor and satire of Gianni Schicchi, the colorful fantasy and dramatic expressiveness of Turandot. This was a very fruitful final flight of Puccini's creative genius.

Puccini's work on his "swan song" was not completed. In the midst of composing “Turandot,” his long-standing throat illness worsened, developing into cancer. Although the doctors hid this terrible diagnosis from him, he felt the approach of a tragic outcome.

Shortly before his death, Puccini noted in one of his letters that “opera has ended as a genre because people have lost the taste for melody and are ready to tolerate musical compositions that contain nothing melodic.”

In the fall of 1924, the opera was largely completed. Mortally ill, Puccini worked feverishly on the orchestration of Turandot. Treatment with radium irradiation initially brought some relief. But on November 29, the fatal ending came: the improvement turned out to be temporary - the heart could not stand it, and the great musician passed away.

Puccini, 1924

Operas by Puccini:

• « Willis"(Italian: Le Villi), 1884. The one-act opera premiered on May 31, 1884 at the Teatro Verme, Milan. Based on the story of the same name by Alfonso Carr about willia mermaids.
• « Edgar"(Italian Edgar), 1889. The opera in 4 acts premiered on April 21, 1889 at La Scala, Milan. Based on the play "La Coupe et les lèvres" by Alfred de Musset
• « Manon Lescaut"(Italian: Manon Lescaut), 1893. The opera premiered on February 1, 1893 at the Teatro Regio, Turin. Based on the novel of the same name by Abbot Prevost
• « Bohemia"(Italian: La bohème), 1896. The opera premiered on February 1, 1896 at the Teatro Regio, Turin. Based on the book “Scènes de la vie de Bohème” by Henri Murger
• « Yearning"(Italian: Tósca), 1900. The opera premiered on January 14, 1900 at the Teatro Costanzi, Rome. Based on the play “La Tosca” by Victorien Sardou
• « Madame Butterfly"(Italian: Madama Butterfly). The premiere of the opera in 2 acts took place on February 17, 1904 at La Scala, Milan. Based on the play of the same name by David Belasco. In Russia the opera was also performed under the title “Chio-Chio-san”
• « Girl from the West"(Italian: La fanciulla del West), 1910. The opera premiered on December 10, 1910 at the Metropolitan Opera Theater, New York. Based on the play by D. Belasco “The Girl of the Golden West”.
• « Martin"(Italian: La rondine), 1917. The opera premiered on March 27, 1917 at the Opéra Theater, Monte Carlo.
• Triptych: " Cloak», « Sister Angelica», « Gianni Schicchi"(Italian: Il Trittico: Il Tabarro, Suor Angelica, Gianni Schicchi), 1918. The opera premiered on December 14, 1918 at the Metropolitan Opera Theater, New York.
• « Turandot"(Italian: Turandot). The opera premiered on March 25, 1926 at La Scala, Milan. Based on the play of the same name by C. Gozzi. Remained unfinished due to the death of the composer, completed by F. Alfano in 1926.