author
Ferdinando Fontana
1850–1919
Best known for writing the libretti for Giacomo Puccini’s first two operas, he moved easily between poetry, journalism, and the theater. His work also placed him within Milan’s lively Scapigliatura circle, where literature and social criticism often went hand in hand.
2 Audiobooks
Poesie e novelle in versi
by Ferdinando Fontana
Nabuco
by Ferdinando Fontana
About the author
Born in Milan on January 30, 1850, he built a varied literary career as a poet, journalist, dramatist, and librettist. He is remembered most widely for the texts of Le Villi and Edgar, the first two operas by Giacomo Puccini, which helped link his name to the beginnings of one of Italy’s most famous composers.
He was also associated with the Milanese Scapigliatura, a restless artistic movement known for its rebellious spirit and sharp cultural criticism. Contemporary reference sources describe him as a writer with socialist ideas, and note that after the unrest of 1898 he took refuge in Switzerland.
He died in Lugano on May 10, 1919. Today, his reputation rests on more than opera alone: he stands as a vivid example of a late 19th-century man of letters whose writing moved across genres and public life.