and which is described by critics as the finest of Italian romantic operas with the traditional components: the solo arias, the duets and the choruses fully integrated into the melodic and dramatic flow. Verdi's last opera, Falstaff (1893), broke free of conventional form altogether and finds music which follows quick flowing simple words and because of its respect for the pattern of ordinary speech, it created a threshold for a new operatic era in which speech patterns are paramount. Opera had become a marriage of the arts, a musical drama, full of glorious song, costume, orchestral music and pageantry; sometimes, without the aid of a plausible story. From its conception during the baroque period to the maturity of the romantic period, it was the medium through which tales and myths were revisited, history was retold and imagination was stimulated. The strength of it fell into a more violent era for opera: verismo, with Cavalleria rusticana by Pietro Mascagni and Pagliacci by Ruggero Leoncavallo. Contemporary period Some of the greatest Italian operas of the 20th century were written by Giacomo Puccini (1858–1924). These include Manon Lescaut, La bohème, Tosca, Madama Butterfly, La fanciulla del West, La rondine and Turandot, the last two being left unfinished. In 1926 and in 2002 Franco Alfano and Luciano Berio respectively attempted a completion of Turandot, and in 1994 Lorenzo Ferrero completed the orchestration of the third version of La rondine. Berio himself wrote two operas, Un re in ascolto and Opera. Ferrero likewise has composed several operas including Salvatore Giuliano, La Conquista, and his 2011 Risorgimento! Other 20th-century Italian opera composers are: Gian Francesco Malipiero (1882–1973) whose 19 operas include L'Orfeide and Torneo notturno Luigi Dallapiccola (1904–1975) whose operas include Ulisse, Volo di notte and Il prigioniero Luigi Nono (1924–1990) who wrote Al gran sole carico d'amore, Intolleranza 1960, and Prometeo Sylvano Bussotti (born 1931) whose prolific compositional output includes La Passion selon Sade, La Racine, pianobar pour Phèdre, Nympheo, Bozzetto siciliano Salvatore Sciarrino (born 1947) who wrote several operas including Luci mie traditrici See also List of Italian opera houses Italian-language operas (category) References Notes Sources Further reading Boyden, Matthew (1997), Opera, the Rough Guide. Holden, Amanda (2001), The New Penguin Opera Guide. Orrey, Leslie; Rodney Milnes, Opera: A Concise History. World of Art, Thames & Hudson Parker, Roger (Ed.) (1994), The Oxford Illustrated History of Opera. Sadie Stanley (Ed.) (1992), The New Grove