HISTORY
Peter Mascagni
Pietro Mascagni was born in Livorno in 1863 to a fairly well-known but not wealthy family.
He lived at the turn of the 1800s and 1900s, occupying a prominent place in the musical scene of the time, thanks in particular to his success with his first opera, Cavalleria Rusticana, in 1890.
A conductor, musician and composer, Mascagni composed 15 other operas that gave him worldwide fame: among them we can mention Iris , which entered the repertoire permanently.
Anna Lolli
Anna Lolli, born in Bagnara in 1888, was Maestro's chorister and muse.
He met Pietro during rehearsals for "Iris" at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome in 1910: he noticed her wonderful green eyes, "splendid eyes, divine, as I had dreamed of them 20 years before," as he himself wrote.
After the Master's death in 1945, Anna led a silent and secluded life, custodian of many objects belonging to him, until 1972, when she died.
His will read, "I leave everything to the parish, with the bond of building a museum dedicated to Mascagni: the Maestro's piano, portraits, love letters...."
Museum Contents
Anna and Master's acquaintance and love were carried on through the many daily letters they wrote to each other-a daily diary filled with events, stories and loving thoughts.
As per Anna's wishes, the museum preserves the Master's objects and testimonies she collected throughout her life, portraits, and some 5,000 love letters written between 1910 and 1945.