author
Ferdinando Fontana
1850–1919
A lively voice in Milan’s literary world, he is remembered above all for writing the librettos for Giacomo Puccini’s first two operas, Le Villi and Edgar. His career ranged across poetry, journalism, and theater, giving his work a strong dramatic spark.
2 Audiobooks
Poesie e novelle in versi
by Ferdinando Fontana
Nabuco
by Ferdinando Fontana
About the author
Born in Milan in 1850, Ferdinando Fontana built a varied career as a journalist, poet, dramatist, and librettist. He is most often linked with the early career of Giacomo Puccini, for whom he wrote the librettos of Le Villi and Edgar.
Fontana was part of the restless, modern literary culture of late nineteenth-century Milan, and his writing moved easily between the page and the stage. That mix of literary style and theatrical instinct helped make him a notable figure in Italian cultural life beyond opera alone.
Later in life he spent time in Switzerland, where he died in Lugano in 1919. Today, he is remembered less as a household name than as a gifted man of letters whose words helped launch one of opera’s most famous composers.