In the footsteps of Giacomo Puccini between Lucca and its province

From the 16th century onwards, and at least until the entire 19th century, Lucca has been crowded with music and musicians, the best-loved and best known of whom is undoubtedly Giacomo Puccini. The famous composer, heir to a family devoted to music for generations, was born and trained in Lucca. He later perfected his musical training in Milan, but after his studies in Milan and his beginnings as a composer, he returned to his homeland. In this article we propose an itinerary that will guide you to discover Puccini’s places of interest. The itinerary winds its way through Lucca and its province.

The first stop of the itinerary is the mountain village of Celle dei Puccini, a hamlet of the municipality of Pescaglia. Here, precisely at number 27 Via Meletori, is the home of his ancestors, where the young Giacomo spent his summer holidays and to which he always remained attached. Since 1976, the elegant 16th-century residence has housed the Puccini Museum in Celle, which traces both the private and artistic life of the great musician. The exhibition is divided into seven rooms, spread over two floors, in which photographs, letters, autographed musical manuscripts and some important relics belonging to the composer, such as the suit in which he was baptised, are exhibited. The village hosts themed cultural events every year.

The itinerary then continues to Lucca, where there are many places connected to the Maestro’s life. At number 9 Corte San Lorenzo, not far from Piazza San Michele, is the Puccini Museum – Birth House, where Giacomo Puccini was born on 22 December 1858. In this house he lived the years of his childhood and early youth, beginning his musical studies and composing his first works. It houses original furniture, autograph scores of early compositions, letters, paintings, photographs, sketches, memorabilia and precious objects that belonged to the musician, including the Steinway & Sons piano on which he composed Turandot. Opposite the museum, in Piazza Cittadella, one can appreciate a bronze statue dedicated to the composer. Other places of Puccini interest in Lucca include: the Church of Santi Giovanni e Reparata, where he was baptised; the Cathedral of San Martino, where Puccini was organist for generations; and the Giglio Theatre, where he staged many of his operas.

The next stop is the Villa Museo Puccini located in Torre del Lago, a delightful hamlet in the municipality of Viareggio. This small two-storey house with the typical appearance of late 19th century bourgeois villas was his last residence. The building, turned into a museum in 1925 by Puccini’s son, houses all kinds of testimonies and memorabilia such as the Foster piano and the revolving chair on which he composed several operas. There is also a villa in Viareggio that belonged to Puccini, which unfortunately is not always open to the public but can be escorted along Viale Michelangelo Buonarroti.

The last stop on the itinerary is the Gran Caffè Margherita in Viareggio, one of the town’s landmark buildings located on the famous Passeggiata. One of its most frequent visitors was Giacomo Puccini himself. In 1949, a plaque was affixed in his honour, recalling that period: ‘During the first quarter of the century, illustrious men such as Marconi, Giordano, Toscanini and the maestro’s dear Italian and foreign friends would meet at this table, chosen by Giacomo Puccini as a meeting place to recreate themselves in the simplicity of civilised conversation after the diuturnal toil surrounding his immortal art’.

Photo Gallery © Ministry of Culture – Villa Museo Giacomo Puccini Torre del Lago – Sailko Wikipedia