Ruggero Leoncavallo is a popular Italian composer, musician and conductor. He composed exceptional pieces of music about the lives of ordinary people. During his lifetime, he managed to realize a lot of innovative ideas.
Childhood and youth
He was born in the territory of Naples. Maestro's date of birth is April 23, 1857. His family was fond of studying the fine arts, so Ruggiero was lucky to be brought up in a traditionally intelligent family. He had a well-developed aesthetic taste. It is known that his ancestors were engaged in fine arts.
The head of the family is the first of the men who dared to break the established traditions. He received a law degree, and then took the position of a judge in the local palace. Mom devoted herself to the introduction of the economy. According to the memoirs of Ruggiero, the woman never complained about her position.
In the 60s, a girl was born in the family, who was Ruggiero's sister. The baby died before the moment of baptism, which plunged the whole family into grief.
After this event, the boy, along with his mother, was forced to move to the province of Cosenza. They settled in a cozy house. Ruggiero fondly remembered those times. Every day he enjoys the mountains and the picturesque nature of Cosenza.
Here, the future maestro takes music lessons from the local composer Sebastiano Ricci for the first time. He introduced the talented Ruggiero to the musical works of the best European composers. Soon the teacher advised the young man to go to study in Naples, which he actually did in the early 1870s.
Within the walls of the conservatory, he mastered playing several musical instruments at once. In addition, the basics of composing compositions obeyed him. At first, he earned his living by serving as servants for aristocrats. Some time later he became a student at the University of Bologna.
Soon the young man was holding a bachelor's degree in his hands. After that, he began writing his dissertation. Ruggiero received a PhD in Philosophy. The knowledge gained was useful to Leoncavallo in building a creative career.
In his youth, he was lucky to play on the same stage with talented musicians and singers. He traveled around European countries and rarely gave music lessons. Only in the late 80s did the maestro take up composing musical works.
The creative path of maestro Ruggero Leoncavallo
He began composing his first opera under the influence of Richard Wagner. The musical work was called "Chatterton". The debut opera was coldly received by the local audience. Music critics were confused by the fact that the work was written in complex language.
The maestro was not embarrassed by the fact that his creation did not find admirers. Without an elementary analysis of errors, he set about writing an epic poem. But the work "Twilight" did not reach the theaters of Italy. The fact that the second work was rejected by the public forced the composer to change his stylistic direction. Leoncavallo turned to simpler subjects in order to get back on his feet a bit. In this matter, he was also embarrassed by the fact that musical works practically did not bring him profit.
Composers of that time wrote about the fate of ordinary people. From successful colleagues, the novice maestro decided to draw some progressive ideas and pour them into his new musical works.
First success and new works
Soon the maestro's first successful opera took place. We are talking about the dramatic musical composition "Pagliacci". The composer wrote the opera based on real events. He spoke about the murder of a popular actress right on stage. "Clowns" was warmly welcomed by the local audience. They talked about Ruggiero in a completely different way.
How warmly the audience and music critics accepted the piece of music inspired the maestro to write a new opera. The composer's new work was called "La Boheme". It was released in the late 90s. Ruggiero had high hopes for the opera, but La bohème did not make the proper impression on the public.
"La Boheme" caused a quarrel with Giacomo Puccini. The composer just presented to the public the opera "Tosca", which made the most pleasant impression on admirers of classical music. Both maestros were simultaneously working on the interpretation of the popular novel, but no one knew whose work would be published first.
As a result, both "La Bohemes" were released in the best theaters in Italy. After Ruggiero faced the dislike of his work, he decided to rename the opera "Life of the Latin Quarter". The audience did not change their opinion about the maestro's opera, which cannot be said about Puccini's musical work.
To remedy the situation, the maestro edits some parts and creates a piece of music, which is called "Mimi Penson". Poems of famous poets were harmoniously woven into the work. The improved opera was accepted not only in Italy, but also abroad.
Success motivated the maestro to continue his creative activity. We are talking about the opera "Zaza". Some fragments of the presented libretto are used in modern films and serials.
During this period of time, the composer introduces fans of his work to the works: "Gypsies" and "Oedipus Rex". Alas, the compositions were not even close to repeating the success of the Pagliacci opera.
The creative heritage of the maestro consists of many plays and romances. He mainly wrote similar musical works for singers. The composition "Dawn" or "Mattinata" was brilliantly performed by Enrico Caruso.
Details of the personal life of the composer Ruggero Leoncavallo
After gaining popularity, the maestro acquired a villa in Switzerland. Popular composers, singers, musicians, and actors often gathered in the luxurious house of Ruggiero.
For a long time he was closely associated with a girl whose name has been lost. Then a woman named Bertha came into his life. After some time, he proposed to a charming girl. Berta became for him not just a wife, but a keeper of the hearth and best friend. Ruggiero left before his wife. She was very upset by the death of a loved one.
Interesting facts about the composer
- It is believed that Mascagni's Rural Honor had a great influence on the maestro.
- After Pagliacci, he created a little less than two dozen operas, but not one of them repeated the success of the presented musical work.
- Pagliacci is the first opera to be recorded on a gramophone record.
- He worked extensively with Caruso as a pianist-accompanist.
- He was considered Puccini's main rival. While Giovanni did not see him as much of a competitor.
Death of Maestro Ruggero Leoncavallo
He spent the last years of his life in the town of Montecatini. Death overtook the maestro in 1919. It is not known exactly what Ruggiero died from. Many people attended his funeral, and everyone unanimously said that Italy was left without the greatest composer.
At the funeral ceremony, the work "Ave Maria" was performed, as well as some works that the composer wrote shortly before his death.
