Pietro Mascagni Pietro Mascagni Pietro Antonio Stefano Mascagni (; 7 December 1863 – 2 August 1945) was an Italian composer most noted for his operas. His 1890 masterpiece "Cavalleria Rusticana" caused one of the greatest sensations in opera history and single-handedly ushered in the "Verismo" movement in Italian dramatic music. While it was often held that Mascagni, like Leoncavallo, was a "one-opera man" who could never repeat his first success, "L'amico Fritz" and "Iris" have remained in the repertoire in Europe (especially Italy) since their premieres. Mascagni said that at one point, "Iris" was performed in Italy more often than "Cavalleria" (cf.
Pagliacci (1982 film) Although they were filmed together, the "Pagliacci" recording was originally released separately from the soundtrack for "Cavalleria rusticana". Pagliacci (1982 film) Pagliacci is a 1982 Italian film of Ruggero Leoncavallo's opera "Pagliacci", directed by Franco Zeffirelli. All the actors, including Plácido Domingo and Teresa Stratas in the starring roles, were opera singers who sang their own parts. "Pagliacci" was shot at Milan's La Scala opera house and on a movie sound stage. Georges Prêtre conducted the Orchestra and Choir of La Scala. The film was screened out of competition at the 1987 Cannes Film Festival. It was also shown on