Creative Spotlight: Giacomo Puccini

Who was Giacomo Puccini?

What were Puccini’s most famous operas?

What was Puccini’s last opera?

When did Puccini die?

Giacomo Puccini was born on December 22, 1858, in Lucca, Tuscany, into a family with a rich musical heritage. His father, Michele Puccini, was a composer and organist, as were his grandfather, Domenico, and great-grandfather, Antonio. After Michele's death in 1864, Giacomo's mother, Albina Magi, supported his musical education. At the age of 14, Puccini entered the Lucca Conservatory to receive formal music training. He initially studied under various teachers, learning composition and organ, and began composing music at a young age. One of his early compositions, a mass for four voices and orchestra, was written in his teenage years, showing his emerging talent. He later refined his composition skills at the prestigious Milan Conservatory, which led to the completion of his first opera, Le villi (1884).

OPERATIC BEGINNINGS: LE VILLI AND EDGAR (1884–1889)

The score for Le villi demonstrates many of the skills that led to Puccini becoming Italy’s greatest 20th-century opera composer – following in the footsteps of his predecessor Giuseppe Verdi – including melodic originality, a wonderful dramatic instinct and rich orchestration. Puccini wrote Le villi for the Sonzogno Competition, a contest organised by Italian publisher Edoardo Sonzogno, but was disqualified as the manuscript was illegible. However, Le villi’s first public performance led Verdi’s publisher, Giulio Ricordi, to take Puccini on. Unfortunately, Puccini had much less success with his second opera, the melodramatic four-act opera Edgar (1889).

RISE TO FAME: MANON LESCAUT (1893)

THREE MASTERPIECES: LA BOHÈME, TOSCA AND MADAMA BUTTERFLY (1896-1904)

In contrast to Bohème’s delicate lyricism and humorous yet heartbreaking depiction of love and friendship, Tosca is a fast-paced drama featuring torture, murder and suicide. The music for Baron Scarpia, Puccini’s great operatic villain (introduced in the opening notes of the opera) is dark and terrifying – but Puccini also wrote passages of great melodic beauty for the lovers Cavaradossi and Tosca. Tosca’s daring harmonic language and dark subject matter have led to it often being hailed as ‘the first modern opera’. The titular heroine is another of Puccini’s complex female characters, and her lament ‘Vissi d’arte’ (I lived for art) is amongst the most beloved arias in opera.

For Madama Butterfly, Puccini moved his setting to Japan, telling the story of an idealistic Japanese geisha who marries and is abandoned by an American naval officer. Cio-Cio San’s (Butterfly) Act II aria, ‘Un bel dì, vedremo’ (One fine day we’ll see), captures her longing as she waits for her husband to return. Puccini showed immense tenderness in his depiction of Cio-Cio-San, one of his greatest and most heartbreaking characters. While composing, Puccini studied traditional Japanese music to create a vivid sense of place. Although Madama Butterfly had an unsuccessful premiere and Puccini revised the score several times, it soon became nearly as popular as La bohème and Tosca and is among the ten most-performed operas in the world today.

NEW FRONTIERS: LA FANCIULLA DEL WEST (1910)

OPERATIC OPERETTA: LA RONDINE (1917)

A TRIUMPHANT TRIPTYCH: IL TRITTICO (1918)

In Il tabarro (The cloak), Puccini again evokes the world of working-class Paris, from the opening dreamy setting of the Seine in the evening to the use of popular song and the savagery of the final scene. In Suor Angelica (Sister Angelica) each of the principal nuns and the cruel princess (Sister Angelica’s aunt) have distinct personalities and motivations. Puccini writes exquisite melodies for Sister Angelico, particularly in her lament ‘Senza mamma’ (Without a mother). Gianni Schicchi is Puccini’s only large-scale comedy and is brilliantly successful in its musical contrasting – particularly of the grasping Donati family, the cunning Schicchi and the ardent lovers Rinuccio and Lauretta – and in its witty orchestration. The aria ‘O Mio babbino Caro’ (Oh my dear Papa) is sung by Lauretta as she and Rinuccio’s families’ scheming drives the couple apart. It has since become a popular recital piece for many singers, including Maria Callas.

PUCCINI’S FINAL OPERA: THE UNFINISHED TURANDOT (1926)

Puccini died in 1924, leaving Turandot without a completed final duet. The opera’s 1926 world premiere presented the work as Puccini left it, with conductor Arturo Toscanini famously laying down his baton to declare ‘Here the maestro laid down his pen’. But a younger composer, Franco Alfano, had been authorised to complete an ending from Puccini’s sketches and his version quickly became standard in performances. Today, Turandot is one of the most admired of Puccini’s operas, and ‘Nessun dorma’ one of the most recognisable arias in the world.

Verismo was an Italian opera movement of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, that emphasised realism, raw emotion and stories about ordinary people rather than nobility or mythology. Inspired by literary naturalism, verismo operas featured intense drama, passionate melodies and rich orchestration. Puccini became one of verismo’s most renowned composers by blending gritty realism with lyrical beauty and psychological depth: his ability to balance the drama of human emotion with melody helped solidify verismo's lasting influence.

Puccini's personal life was as dramatic as his operas. He had a long affair with Elvira Gemignani, the wife of a Lucca merchant, which led to scandal. When Elvira’s husband died in 1904, she and Puccini married, but their relationship remained troubled due to his numerous affairs. One of the most infamous incidents involved their maid, Doria Manfredi, whom Elvira accused of seducing Puccini. Doria later died by suicide, and it was revealed she was innocent, leading to Elvira’s brief imprisonment for defamation. Despite his turbulent marriage, Puccini maintained an opulent lifestyle, enjoying luxury cars, hunting and a retreat at Torre del Lago. In 1903, he suffered a serious car accident, leaving him with a fractured leg and a long recovery, which slowed his work. Puccini had one son, Antonio, with Elvira, though rumours of other illegitimate children persist.

Politically, the composer remained largely neutral, which led to criticism from both conservatives and progressives. This detachment allowed Puccini’s music to transcend political divides but also made him a target for those who sought stronger ideological commitments from public figures, as they’d found in his famed Italian predecessor, Giuseppe Verdi.

On 29 November 1924, Puccini died in Brussels from a heart attack, following complications from throat cancer treatment. He had undergone experimental radiation therapy, but his condition worsened, and he passed away before completing his final opera, Turandot. Puccini’s legacy as one of opera’s greatest composers endures. His ability to blend emotional depth, rich orchestration and unforgettable melodies revolutionised Italian opera. Masterpieces like La bohème, Tosca and Madama Butterfly remain universally loved and performed, ensuring the Italian composer’s music continues to captivate audiences worldwide.