Puccini - Puccini (English spelling) Giacomo Puccini

Italian opera composer. Born in Lucca. Born into a family of musicians dating back to the 18th century. After losing his musician father at the age of five, he began his musical training, carrying the hopes of his family. He became an organist at the age of 14 and composed organ music at the age of 17, but after hearing Verdi's opera Aida in Pisa in 1876, he resolved to break away from his family's tradition of being a religious musician and become an opera composer. Four years later, in order to achieve this goal, he entered the Milan Conservatory and studied composition under Ponchielli and others for three years. In 1884, at the urging of his teacher, he composed his first opera, Le Villi, which premiered in Milan and was a success. It is a tragedy based on the legend of the fairy Billi, and it deals with the same subject matter as the ballet Giselle. His second work, Edgar (premiered in Milan in 1889), was a complete failure, as the script, a simple rehash of Carmen, did not suit Puccini's talents. His third work, Manon Lescaut (premiered in Turin in 1893), was the first of his own choosing, inspired by Massenet's opera Manon, based on the novel of the same name by the Abbé Prévost; it achieved an unprecedented success and established his status as an opera composer.

The fourth work, "La Bohème," is the first of Puccini's three great works alongside "Tosca" and "Madame Butterfly" (all with librettos by Luigi Illica (1857-1919) and G. Giacosa), and depicts a group of poor young artists living in the back streets of Paris in a realistic and vivid manner. It premiered in Turin in 1896 under the direction of Toscanini, but was poorly received by audiences who had expected the romanticism of the previous work. The next work, "Tosca," was the first verismo opera based on the play of the same name by V. Sardou, and premiered in Rome in 1900, but was criticized for the cruelty of the plot and was unsuccessful. Madame Butterfly is an English play dramatized by D. Belasco based on a novel by John Luther Long (1861-1927) based on a true story. After seeing it in London in 1900, Puccini planned to turn it into an opera, which premiered at La Scala in Milan in 1904, but like the previous two, it ended in failure. However, in terms of exoticism, this tragic love story between a Japanese geisha and an American officer is more successful than Daughter of the West (premiered in New York in 1910), which is set in America during the Gold Rush, and Turandot, his posthumous work based on China. Although none of these three major works were highly acclaimed when they were first performed, they are now popular as major parts of the opera repertoire. In particular, "Madame Butterfly" is beloved as one of the most popular operas in Japan, and has also been a "trump card" for Japanese prima donnas, from Miura Tamaki to Azuma Atsuko (1936-1999) and Hayashi Yasuko (1943-), to flourish on the world's biggest stages.

His other works include the operetta-like "The Swallow" (premiered in Monte Carlo in 1917) and the trilogy "The Overcoat," "Sorriere Angelica," and "Gianni Schicchi" (premiered in New York in 1918). The first two of the three one-act works are lukewarm, but the third is his only comedy masterpiece, comparable to Verdi's late comedy "Falstaff." His posthumous work "Turandot," which he wrote up to the final duet, was left unfinished when he died in Brussels, and was completed posthumously by Franco Alfano (1875-1954) and premiered in Milan in 1926.

The appeal of Puccini's operas lies in the way that his innate theatrical sense, along with his lyrical, familiar melodies and tight orchestration, brings about unique, lively and realistic stage effects.

[Funayama Nobuko]

"Puccini: Life and Art" by M. Carna, translated by Yasushi Kano (1967, Ongaku No Tomosha)" ▽ " Puccini: A Study of His Works" by M. Carna, translated by Yasushi Kano (1968, Ongaku No Tomosha)" ▽ "Everything about Puccini" by Teiichi Miyazawa (1990, Geijutsu Gendaisha)"

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

イタリアのオペラ作曲家。ルッカに生まれる。18世紀から続く音楽一族の出身。5歳で音楽家の父を失って以来、家族の期待を担って音楽修業を始める。14歳のころオルガン奏者となり、17歳でオルガン曲を作曲したが、1876年にピサでベルディのオペラ『アイーダ』に接してからは、宗教音楽家という一族の伝統を破ってオペラ作曲家になる決意を固めた。そして4年後、この目的を果たすためにミラノ音楽院に入り、3年間ポンキエッリなどに作曲を学んだ。1884年に師の勧めでオペラ第一作『ビッリ』Le Villiを作曲し、ミラノにおける初演は成功を収めた。これは妖精(ようせい)ビッリの伝説に基づく悲劇で、バレエ『ジゼル』と同じ題材を扱っている。第二作『エドガー』（1889ミラノ初演）は、『カルメン』の安直な焼き直しの台本がプッチーニの資質とあわず、完全な失敗に終わった。第三作『マノン・レスコー』（1893トリノ初演）は、アベ・プレボーの同名小説に基づくマスネのオペラ『マノン』に啓発されて、作曲者自らが選んだ最初の作品で、後にも先にも例のない成功を収め、オペラ作曲家としての地位を築いた。

　第四作『ボエーム』は、『トスカ』『蝶々(ちょうちょう)夫人』と並ぶプッチーニの三大作（いずれもL・イリッカLuigi Illica（1857―1919）とG・ジャコーザの台本）の最初の作品で、パリの裏町の貧しくも若い芸術家の群像が、写実的に生き生きと描かれている。1896年トリノでトスカニーニの指揮で初演されたが、前作のロマン性を期待した聴衆には不評であった。続く『トスカ』は、V・サルドゥーの同名戯曲に基づく初めてのベリズモ・オペラで、1900年にローマで初演されたが、筋書きの残酷性などが非難の的となり、不成功に終わった。『蝶々夫人』は、実話に基づくJ・L・ロングJohn Luther Long（1861―1927）の小説をD・ベラスコが戯曲化した英語の芝居で、1900年にこれをロンドンで見たプッチーニがオペラ化を計画、1904年にミラノのスカラ座で初演をみたが、前二作と同じく失敗に終わった。しかし、日本の芸者とアメリカ人士官のこの悲恋劇は、エキゾチシズムの点で、黄金狂時代のアメリカを舞台にした『西部の娘』（1910ニューヨーク初演）や、中国に取材した遺作『トゥーランドット』より成功している。以上の三大作は、いずれも初演時には高い評価を受けなかったとはいえ、現在ではオペラの主要なレパートリーとして根強い人気をもっている。とくに『蝶々夫人』は日本でもっともポピュラーなオペラの一つとして親しまれ、また古くは三浦環(たまき)から東敦子(あずまあつこ)（1936―1999）、林康子(はやしやすこ)（1943―　）に至るまで、日本人プリマドンナが世界の檜(ひのき)舞台で活躍するための「切り札」の作品ともなっている。

　そのほかの作品に、オペレッタ的な『燕(つばめ)』（1917モンテ・カルロ初演）と、三部作『外套(がいとう)』『修道女アンジェリーカ』『ジャンニ・スキッキ』（1918ニューヨーク初演）がある。いずれも一幕からなる三部作の前二作はなまぬるい作風だが、第三作はベルディの晩年の喜劇『ファルスタッフ』に比すべき、唯一の傑作喜劇である。遺作『トゥーランドット』は最後の二重唱まで書き上げてあったが、未完成のままブリュッセルに没したので、死後アルファーノFranco Alfano（1875―1954）によって完成され、1926年ミラノで初演された。

　プッチーニのオペラの魅力は、彼の生来もっている演劇的感覚が、叙情味あふれる親しみやすい旋律や緊密な管弦楽法などとともに、リアリティーに富む、生き生きとした独特の舞台効果をもたらしている点にあるといえよう。

［船山信子］

『M・カーナ著、加納泰訳『プッチーニ――生涯・芸術』（1967・音楽之友社）』▽『M・カーナ著、加納泰訳『プッチーニ――作品研究』（1968・音楽之友社）』▽『宮沢縦一著『プッチーニのすべて』（1990・芸術現代社）』

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