Born
April 23, 1857
Died
August 9, 1919
Country
Italy
Though it was not performed publicly until some time later, Italian composer Ruggero Leoncavallo completed his first opera, Chatterton, in 1876, before his twentieth birthday. Not long after, Leoncavallo fell on hard times and became a café pianist and occasionally taught in Paris, London, and Egypt.
The famous baritone Victor Maurel introduced him to Ricordi, the leading music publisher in Milan, beginning a tumultuous relationship. Heavily influenced by Wagner, Leoncavallo conceived of a three-part Italian answer to the Ring cycle. Only the first part, I Medici, was completed. Though technically proficient, it met with little success and caused ongoing problems with Ricordi. Leoncavallo either did not want to or could not finish the triology.
Soon thereafter, Leoncavallo realized the potential of realism in opera and began composing what would be become Pagilacci, which was based on the facts of one of his magistrate father's legal cases. Pagliacci was an immediate success and paved the way for public performances of his earlier works, I Medici and Chatterton.
He finished his adaption of Murger’s Scegravenes de la vie de Bohegraveme in 1892, fifteen months after Puccini’s version. Though both Le Bohème’s were successful initially, Puccini’s has better stood the test of time.
Zazagrave (1900) followed with great international success and was followed by a commission from Wilhelm II for an opera celebrating the Hohenzollern dynasty. The German-language Der Roland von Berlin received great acclaim at its debut in 1904.
An early adaptor of the new media of the early 20th century, Leoncavallo’s version of Mattinata was recorded by Caruso in 1904 and was overwhelmingly successful. His last completed work, Goffredo Mameli (1916), was a grandly patriotic. He left unfinished the most ambitious work of his life, adapting the plays Edipo re and Prometeo into operas. Edipo was debuted after his death in 1919.
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Video
Get out your opera glasses and prepare to take a look at the history and evolution of an art form over four hundred years old. Learn how singers train and condition their voices, become familiar with some of the stage’s most tragic love affairs, and discover how theatre and music combined can tell epic stories in unforgettable ways.
Meet great composers, explore the vast musical world of the orchestra, study the science behind the instruments, and discover how classical music is anything but boring.
Get inside the mind of a composer—from a popular song, to a Broadway musical, to a symphony, how does a composer write music?
You might see some of these instruments when you come to the Kennedy Center, watch a performance by your school band, or at any other concert you attend! Click the slides to learn more about some of the most frequently spotted instruments in each family.
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