GIACOMO PUCCINI

The new opera, was to be called Edgar, based on a drama by Alfred de Musset it was a subject wholly unsuited to Puccini's gifts. Its first performance (Milan, La Scala, 25Th April 1889) failed dismally, Puccini rewrote its four acts into three (Ferrara, 1892) and again made revisions in 1901 and 1905, but the opera has not survived, in the composer's words it was a "cantonata" - "a blunder". During the work on Edgar Puccini's association with Elvira Gemignani starts, she is married to a Lucchese business man, in 1886 she gave birth to his only son, Antonio, Italy then having rigid Catholic rules, a divorce was out of the question, so it was not until the death of Elvira's husband in 1904 that the two could be legally married in church.

After the world success of Massenet's Manon first given in Paris 1884; based on the famous autobiographical novel by the Abbé Prévost, Puccini decided to choose the same subject for his next opera, Manon Lescaut. This was the first time Puccini had taken an active part in a libretto alongside five librettists no less, firstly there was Leoncavallo, then Praga and Oliva and finally Illica and Giacosa, with Ricordi advising them all and Puccini at the controls: the libretto of an opera was as important as its musical setting to Puccini. The plot and the characters of Manon Lescaut he felt were well suited to his particular genius, as there were so many names associated with the opera. Manon Lescaut was published without the names of the librettists, most unusual to say the least. The first performance of the opera was given in Turin 1st Feb, overnight Puccini's name became known all over Italy and the world.

Whilst Puccini was still working on Manon Lescaut, (1891) he bought a house in the small village of Torre del Lago by the side the lake Massaciùccoli, Giacomo loved to go shooting waterfowl and this was the ideal place, the rest of his operas with the exception of Turandot, were composed at Torre del Lago.
For Puccini's next three operas La Bohème, Tosca and Madama Butterfly, he had the librettists Illica and Giacosa. There was always a set division of labour between the two. Illica would look after the scenario and invent picturesque details while Giacosa would look after the poetic side and the versification of the prose text. There were terrible arguments between the librettists and composer, who was known to be a hard task master.
Giacosa threatened to resign a number of times, but in the end Puccini won, for he knew what would make the most impact on stage. From the merest hint in Prévost's novel, Puccini developed the embarkation scene of Manon Lescaut, a most unique scene in all opera, he invented the spine-chilling man hunt in La Fanciulla del West, and created the character of the slave girl Liù and the scene of her suicide in Turandot. Added to this, Puccini had the gift of inventing a liquescent, melting melody, the morbidezza of the typically Puccinian cantilena is irresistible in its effect; there is his magisterial treatment of the singing voice and there is his masterly exploitation of harmonic, rhythmic and Orchestral devises. Technically he always kept abreast of the innovations of his time, with Wagner, Debussy and Stravinsky as his main guides. It is the accumulation of such gifts which makes Puccini the most important Italian opera composer since Verdi. Puccini heroines are nearly always more important than his heroes -- seven of his twelve stage works are called after the name of the heroine. La Bohème was first performed in Turin 1st Feb 1896: it was not well received by the critics who had come expecting an opera in the rich romantic vein of Manon Lescaut, whereas the new work was for the most part a light conversational style of opera, touching on realism. For many musicians of today the opera that ranks as the composer's masterpiece. Tosca, first performed in Rome on 14th Jan 1900 was Puccini's first excursion into pure verismo.