Giacomo Puccini
Giacomo Puccini, (1858-1924). Italian composer. Puccini was born into a family of musicians stretching back five generations. At the age of 22 he went to the Milan Conservatoire where the composer Ponchielli recognized his talent. His first operatic success, Manon Lescaut (1893), was followed in 1896 by La Boheme, a picture of Bohemian life in Paris. Madame Butterfly (1904) tells the story of the tragic love of a Japanese woman for a US naval officer. Puccini died of cancer of the throat before completing his last opera, Turandot. Purcell, Henry (1659-95). English composer. Purcell be-came a chorister of the Chapel Royal in 1669, where he studied under Dr John Blow. In 1679 he became organist of Westminster Abbey. His compositions include odes written for such royal occasions as the funeral of Queen Mary, the opera Dido and Aeneas (1689), and many songs and instrumental pieces. Al-though he is usually considered the finest of English composers, little is known about his life and character.
