Sergio Puccini

Puccini's Il trittico is a triple-bill which is seldom performed as such. Of the three one-act short operas that compose it, only Gianni Schicchi is regularly seen on stage; Suor Angelica is second, but perhaps more often performed in concert form, its only famous piece being the aria "senza mamma", while Il tabarro is a real rarity. The effort to set up three different operas which demand quite different casts is certainly one of the reasons for this situation. Il tabarro calls for real spinto voices in the main roles, while Angelica is also quite demanding for the singer in the title role, not to mention the huge number of principals it calls for.

Irish National Opera is delighted to announce the release of our second album, Puccini's La bohème, on the Signum Records label.

Vladimir Cosma became a highly regarded and hugely prolific soundtrack composer for the French cinema in the 60s and 70s. Cosma is a stellar example of the rich traditon of French movie composers, from Auric to Delerue to Desplat. Like them, he seems to effortlessly breathe melodies. His music can be lush, it can be spritely. It shimmeres, cascades, and yes, sometimes, it kicks butt. This second box set of his scores, like the first, is a treasure chest for fans of rich, melodic film music.

In the words of a survey of nineteenth-century Italian opera, published by the Corriere della sera to mark the turning of the century, Mascagni was "condemned to a masterpiece": after the triumph of Cavalleria rusticana nothing less would do. He lived for another 55 years, and although some of his 14 subsequent operas were immensely successful for a while (he claimed that Iris was better received than Cavalleria, and there was a near-riot of enthusiasm at the premiere of Il piccolo Marat) none was judged by the critics to be the awaited 'masterpiece', and nearly all had fallen from the repertory by the end of his life.

Stefano Bigoni studied piano with Gioiella Giannoni and Vincenzo Audino and achieved his diploma at the Conservatorio "G. Puccini" in La Spezia with full marks. He completed his musical education graduating in composition and instrumentation for bands at the Conservatorio "A. Casella" in L'Aquila with Maestro Piero Luigi Zangelmi.