Francesco Cilea

The reputation of Italian composer Francesco Cilea (1866-1950) primarily rests on one work, the verismo opera Adriana Lecouvreur (1902), based on the true story of an ill-fated eighteenth century actress. Cilea came from a middle-class background, and his family did not approve of his pursuit of music. Nevertheless, Cilea diligently worked to become a respected conservatory professor, composing on the side. Adriana Lecouvreur was preceded by one moderate operatic success, L'Arlesiana (1897), and a string of failures; afterward Cilea was unable to find further success and gave up composing by 1930, concentrating on teaching and in revising older works.