Humanities West and the Italian Cultural Institute San Francisco celebrate the life and art of Giacomo Puccini (December 22, 1858, to November 29, 1924) on the 100th anniversary of his death. His operas La Bohème, Tosca, Madama Butterfly and Turandot are among the most beloved and most often-recorded operas of all time.

His arias are famous for both their emotional resonance and their melodic beauty—even among millions who have never listened to a complete opera. Puccini was born into a centuries-old family of Italian composers, and he began his successful career just as Verdi was completing his, quickly inheriting Verdi’s renown as the greatest living composer of Italian opera.