Early life and education Mascagni was born on 7 December 1863 in
Livorno,
Tuscany, the second son of Domenico and Emilia Mascagni. His father owned and operated a bakery.
Giovanni Targioni-Tozzetti ("Nanni") was born the same year in the same city and became Mascagni's lifelong friend and collaborator. In 1876, at the age of 13, Mascagni began musical studies with Alfredo Soffredini, who founded the
Instituto Musicale di Livorno (later called
Istituto Cherubini). Soffredini had just completed his musical studies in
Milan. Also a native of Livorno, Soffredini was a composer, teacher and musical critic. Mascagni started composing rapidly: between 1879 and 1880, he wrote several works:
Sinfonia in do minore,
Prima sinfonia in fa maggiore,
Elegia,
Kyrie,
Gloria and
Ave Maria.
Musical career: 1880–1889 The premiere of Mascagni's first
cantata,
In Filanda, took place at the Istituto Cherubini on 9 February 1881. Performed at a musical contest in Milan, the cantata won the first prize. In the same year, Mascagni met the musicians
Arrigo Boito and
Amilcare Ponchielli in Milan. In 1882, he composed his
Cantata alla gioia from a text by
Friedrich Schiller, followed by
La stella di Garibaldi for voice and piano, and
La tua stella. On 6 May Mascagni left Livorno for Milan. He passed the admission examination of the
Milan Conservatory on 12 October. In Milan, Mascagni met the noted composer
Giacomo Puccini, and was a student of
Amintore Galli, artistic director of the . On 9 January 1883, Mascagni's sister, Maria, died. The cantata
In Filanda became
Pinotta, and was proposed for the musical contest of the Conservatorio, but as his registration was late, it was not accepted. In 1884, he composed
Ballata for
tenor and
piano; ''M'ama non m'ama
, scherzo for soprano and piano; Messagio d'amore
, and Alla luna''. In 1885, Mascagni composed
Il Re a Napoli in Cremona, a romance for tenor and
orchestra, on a text by
Andrea Maffei. He left Milan without completing his studies. That year, he began touring as a conductor in the operetta companies of Vittorio Forlì, Alfonso and Ciro Scognamiglio, and, in
Genoa, the company of
Luigi Arnaldo Vassallo. Mascagni met the impresario Luigi Maresca in 1886 and started working with him. That December, Mascagni arrived in
Cerignola with Maresca's company. He was accompanied by Argenide Marcellina Carbognani (Lina), his future wife. Helped by the mayor Giuseppe Cannone, Mascagni soon left the company of Maresca, though not without problems. He was appointed as the master of music and singing of the new philharmonia of Cerignola. His reputation grew. He also gave piano lessons. In February 1888, he began work on the
Messa di Gloria. In July 1888, Casa Musicale Sonzogno announced in the
Teatro Illustrato its second competition for a one-act opera, to be judged by a panel including Galli and
Antonio Ghislanzoni. The following year, Mascagni completed his composition of
Cavalleria rusticana on 27 May and sent the manuscript to Milan. Mascagni won against seventy-two other operas, including
Niccola Spinelli's
Labilia and 's
Rudello. Mascagni married Lina Carbognani on 3 February 1889. The next day their first son, Domenico Mascagni ("Mimì"), was born. Their son Dino was born on 3 January 1891. A daughter, Emi, was born in 1892.
1890–1899 On 21 February 1890, Mascagni was summoned to Rome to present his opera. The première of
Cavalleria rusticana, winner of the Sonzogno contest, was held 17 May at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome. It had outstanding success, and the opera was soon performed in both the north and south of Italy:
Florence,
Turin,
Bologna,
Palermo,
Milan,
Genoa,
Naples,
Venice and
Trieste. In December,
Gustav Mahler conducted the opera in
Budapest. Soon thereafter, the cities of
Munich,
Hamburg,
St. Petersburg,
Dresden and
Buenos Aires welcomed the opera. In March 1891, it was sung in
Vienna. At age 26, Mascagni had become internationally famous. Mascagni premiered his ''
L'amico Fritz, his second most successful opera, on 31 October 1891 at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome. I Rantzau'' premiered on 10 November at the Teatro La Pergola, in Florence, under his personal direction. The composer next completed
Silvano (1894). On 16 February 1895, he premiered
Guglielmo Ratcliff at the Teatro alla Scala of Milan. On 15 March
Silvano was premiered at the same theatre. That year, Mascagni accepted the directorship of the
Liceo Rossini in
Pesaro and moved his family there. On 2 March 1896, Mascagni conducted the première of
Zanetto at the Liceo. He continued his composing and directing. On 29 June 1898 in
Recanati, Mascagni conducted the première of his
symphonic poem,
A Giacomo Leopardi. Mascagni began a collaboration with
Luigi Illica, a librettist. Their first work,
Iris, was premiered on 22 November at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome. Mascagni's father died in May 1899.
1900–1909 '' poster, 1905, showing
Geraldine Farrar who performed the title role in the
Monte Carlo premiere. In 1900, Mascagni toured Moscow and
St. Petersburg and, on 17 January 1901,
Le maschere was premiered in six Italian theatres.
Giuseppe Verdi died on 27 January and the following month Mascagni commemorated Verdi's passing. That same year, he conducted Verdi's
Requiem in Vienna. Mascagni composed the
incidental music for
Hall Caine's play,
The Eternal City in August 1902; the première of the play with Mascagni's music took place in London on 2 October. In 1902 and 1903, he toured in Canada and the United States, (in particular
Montreal, New York City,
Philadelphia,
Boston and San Francisco), where he conducted many of his and other composers' works. The tour was mostly a fiasco, except for the visit to San Francisco where Mascagni was extremely well received. In 1903, Mascagni left Pesaro after problems with the authorities. He became director of the
Scuola Musicale Romana, in Rome. In the same year, he signed a contract with the French editor
Paul de Choudens.
Amica, based on a poem by Choudens with a French libretto by
Paul Collin, was premiered on 16 March 1905, in Monte-Carlo. That year, he had disputes with
Ruggero Leoncavallo and
Giacomo Puccini. He also had the Livornese première of
Le maschere. Mascagni was director of the Costanzi for the season beginning in August 1909.
1910–1919 , 1912 On 4 April 1910, Mascagni began a relationship with Anna Lolli. In October he was reconciled with Puccini. Mascagni ceased his activity as director of the Scuola Musicale Romana in 1911. That May he left for
Buenos Aires, beginning a seven-month tour in South America. The première of
Isabeau took place in Buenos Aires on 2 June. The Italian première of
Isabeau was held simultaneously at La Scala in Milan (conductor
Tullio Serafin) and at
La Fenice in
Venice (conductor Mascagni) in 1912. On 28 March, he began to work on
Parisina in Bellevue, near Paris, sometimes with his daughter Emi, his mistress Anna Lolli, and the librettist
Gabriele d'Annunzio.
Parisina was premiered in Milan on 15 December of that year. Almost all the important Italian composers of the time were present, among them Puccini,
Umberto Giordano and
Riccardo Zandonai. The new work was premiered in Livorno and Rome in 1914. On 28 July, the events occurred that shortly led to World War I: Puccini and Mascagni were against the involvement of Italy in this war, in which Mascagni's son Dino was later made a prisoner. In 1915 Mascagni wrote music for Nino Oxilia's movie
Rapsodia Satanica; the custom was for silent films to be accompanied live in a theatre by organ, piano, or an orchestra, often using a prepared score (sometimes with original music) with cues for the conductor or musician. Mascagni had a quarrel regarding the rights of Louise de la Ramée's
Two Little Wooden Shoes (
I due Zoccoletti), which inspired both Puccini and Mascagni. The subject was retained by Mascagni for
Lodoletta. The latter opera was premiered on 30 April 1917 in Rome. The Livornese première of the opera was on 28 July with
Beniamino Gigli as Flammen.
Sì, Mascagni's operetta, which he had been manoeuvred into writing by the impresario
Carlo Lombardo, was premiered on 13 December in Rome.
1920–1939 In 1920 Mascagni composed
Il piccolo Marat, which was premiered in Rome on 2 May 1921, followed by a premiere in
Buenos Aires in September. The composer returned to South America for a tour beginning in May 1922. In 1923, he composed
Visione Lirica. Mascagni appeared on the cover of
Time on 6 September 1926. He moved to the Grand Hotel Plaza in Rome in 1927, a place he would not leave until his death. In 1930, Mascagni conducted
La bohème in
Torre del Lago, as a homage to
Puccini, who had died in 1924. In 1931,
Le maschere was performed at
La Scala.
Pinotta was premiered in
San Remo on 23 March 1932. He joined the PNF (
Fascist party), following the example of many contemporary musicians, including
Giordano.
Nerone was premièred in Milan on 16 January 1935, followed by the première in Livorno on 24 August. In June 1936, Mascagni's son Dino died in
Somalia.
Last years , Rome In 1940, celebrations for the fiftieth anniversary of his most popular opera,
Cavalleria rusticana, took place all over Italy, often with Mascagni conducting. The opera was recorded for
La Voce del padrone ("His Master's Voice") at La Scala under the direction of Mascagni, who recorded a special spoken introduction. EMI later reissued the recording on LP and CD. In 1942, after an audience with
Pope Pius XII, newspapers quoted Mascagni, a
Roman Catholic, as saying that his
tuberculosis-stricken niece was cured after receiving a rosary and silver medal blessed by the pope. In April 1943, Mascagni appeared for the last time at La Scala to conduct ''L'amico Fritz
. By that time he had to conduct sitting on a chair. The last season of Mascagni at the Rome Opera (Cavalleria rusticana
and L'amico Fritz'') was 1944–45. Mascagni died on 2 August 1945 in his apartment at the Grand Hotel Plaza in Rome. The funeral ceremony was on 4 August. The Italian authorities were not present. In 1951, his body was transferred from Rome to Livorno, where Mascagni finally received an official homage. On 7 December 1963, the centenary of Mascagni's birth, a plaque was erected in Rome on the Albergo del Sole where Mascagni stayed during the premiere of
Cavalleria rusticana. ==Selected works==