Giacomo Puccini was an Italian composer who lived from 1858 to 1924. He wrote operas, and almost nothing else. Three of them, La bohème, Tosca, and Madama Butterfly, are among the most often performed operas in the world. His tunes are warm and full of feeling. The best first piece for a child is “O mio babbino caro,” a two-minute song.
Quick facts
- Born: 1858, in Lucca, Italy
- Died: 1924, in Brussels, Belgium
- Era: Romantic and early Modern
- Played: organ and piano
- Known for: the operas La bohème, Tosca, Madama Butterfly, and Turandot
The life in short
Puccini came from a family of church musicians. For four generations before him, a Puccini had been the organist of the cathedral in Lucca. His father died when Giacomo was five, and the town kept the post open for him.
He was not a model pupil. He played the organ in church as a teenager, and he sometimes slipped opera tunes into the service.
At 17, he and two friends walked for hours to the city of Pisa to see an opera by Giuseppe Verdi. They walked home again in the dark. After that night, he wanted to write operas and nothing else.
He studied in Milan on a small grant, sharing a cold room and counting every coin. He put those years into La bohème, his opera about poor young artists in Paris.
His first opera won him a publisher. His second failed. His third, Manon Lescaut, was a triumph in 1893. Then came La bohème, Tosca, and Madama Butterfly, one after another, in the next 11 years.
Success made him rich. He bought a house by a lake and filled his free time with fast cars, motorboats, and duck hunting.
He was working on Turandot, an opera set in a legendary China, when he died in 1924. Another composer finished the last scene from his sketches. At the first performance, the conductor stopped the orchestra at the point where Puccini had put down his pen. He turned to the audience and said that there the master had died.
What the music sounds like
Puccini wrote long, soaring melodies. The orchestra often plays the tune along with the singer, which gives it a rich, full sound. He knew the theater well, and he timed every moment for effect.
He liked to set his operas in far-off places, and he studied the music of each one. He used Japanese songs in Madama Butterfly and Chinese tunes in Turandot.
Pieces to play first
“O mio babbino caro,” from Gianni Schicchi. The title means “Oh, my dear papa.” A daughter begs her father to let her marry the boy she loves. The tune is sweet and short. It comes from his only comedy.
“Nessun dorma,” from Turandot. The title means “None shall sleep.” A prince sings through the night that he will win at dawn. The song ends with long, ringing high notes on the word for “I will win.”
Humming Chorus, from Madama Butterfly. A choir hums with closed mouths while a woman waits through the night. There are no words at all.
Musetta’s Waltz, from La bohème. A lively young woman sings a slow waltz in a café to get everyone’s attention.
Things to do together
Hold the note. Play the end of “Nessun dorma.” See who can hold a note the longest on one breath.
Hum along. Play the Humming Chorus and hum with the choir, lips closed.
Guess the feeling. Play “O mio babbino caro” without saying what it is about. Ask whether the singer is angry, sad, or asking for something.
Walk for music. Puccini walked to another city to hear an opera. Ask your child how far they would walk to see their favorite show.
What parents need to know
Puccini’s operas are for adults. People fall in love, fall ill, and die. The songs above are safe to play on their own. Read the story of a whole opera before you show it to a child.
His one comedy, Gianni Schicchi, lasts under an hour and is a good first Puccini for an older child. A family tricks its way into a rich man’s will, and a clever stranger tricks them all.
Print and play
Fill in a composer study notebook page for Puccini. To learn how opera works, read opera for kids. For the composer whose opera sent him walking to Pisa, read Verdi for kids.
For more composers from the same country, read Italian composers for kids. For more composers by era, see classical composers for kids.
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This article is part of Classical composers for kids: a guide by era, from Vivaldi to Britten.
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Use it with your kids
Print a listening page, a practice chart, or a composer fact sheet. Or try a tool, such as the composer timeline or the piece picker.