Pietro Mascagni

Pietro Mascagni (1863–1945) was born in Piazza delle Erbe, his father had an established bakery and was well known in Livorno. Tall, slouching, always shaved, with the air of a boy, clear eyes, a rebellious tuft, Pietro had a spontaneous, immediate labronic soul, unable to remain silent and not very diplomatic. He oscillated between enthusiasm and dejection, euphoria and melancholy. All his life he seemed exuberant, struggling not to let the sadness, the bad mood, leak out.

His father was not happy when he decided to devote himself completely to music and enrolled at the Milan conservatory, where he…