New blog post from Lesley Koenig –

Giacomo Puccini

 Verismo: True to Life

Giacomo Puccini, known as Italy’s greatest composer after Verdi, was born Giacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini in Lucca, Tuscani. With such a name he was destined for greatness. One of seven children of Michele Puccini and Albina Magi, Giacomo was born into Lucca’s local musical dynasty. His great-great-grandfather, also named Giacomo, was the maestro di cappella of the Cattedrale di San Martino in Lucca — a position that was passed down from father to son all the way down to Giacomo’s father. The men in la famiglia Puccini all studied music in Bologna and had successful careers in music composition. La famiglia Puccini had held the position of maestro di cappella for 124 years when Michele Puccini died in 1864, leaving the position for his son, our Giacomo. However, Giacomo was only 6 at time and thus…