Lives in Song: Puccini – EPISODE 6 – “La rondine – the final 1921 version”

Puccini’s later years were punctuated by illnesses – his chain smoking would eventually lead to throat cancer – and the deaths of Giulio Ricordi, his editor and publisher, and the librettist Giuseppe Giacosa. Despite his prowess as an operatic composer and a warm reception from critics and audiences alike, his 1917 opera, La rondine, proved to be one of his least popular works. Puccini subsequently revised it twice, in 1920 and 1921 – this final ...