The son of a judge, Leoncavallo was educated at the Conservatorio San Pietro a Majella in his native city, Naples (the date 1858, given for his birth in older histories of music, is incorrect). After some years spent teaching and in ineffective attempts to obtain the production of more than one opera, he saw the enormous success of Mascagni's Cavalleria Rusticana in 1890, and he wasted no time in producing his own verismo hit, Pagliacci. (According to Leoncavallo, the plot of this work had a real-life origin: he claimed it derived from a murder trial over which his father had presided.)
Pagliacci was performed in Milan in 1892 with immediate success; today it is the only work by Leoncavallo in the standard operatic repertory. Its most famous aria Vesti la giubba ("Put on the trappings" or, in the better-known older translation, "On with the motley") was recorded by Enrico Caruso and became the world's first record to sell a million copies.
The next year his I Medici was also produced in Milan, but neither it nor Chatterton (1896)—both early works—obtained any favour, and it was not until La Bohème was performed in 1897 in Venice that his talent obtained public confirmation. (Its two tenor arias are still occasionally performed, especially in Italy, yet it was outshone by Puccini's opera of the same name and on the same subject (albeit a better libretto), which was premiered in 1896.) Subsequent operas by Leoncavallo were Zazà (1900) (the opera of Geraldine Farrar's famous farewell performance at the Met), and Der Roland (1904). Nothing from the latter opera is heard today, but the baritone aria from Zazà is still sometimes sung.
Leoncavallo also wrote songs, most famously Mattinata. He died in Montecatini, Tuscany, in 1919.
Leoncavallo was the librettist for all of his own operas. Many considered him the greatest Italian librettist of his time after Boito. Among Leoncavallo's librettos for other composers is his contribution to the libretto for Puccini's Manon Lescaut.
Mattinata
Ruggero Leoncavallo Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Già l'uscio dischiude al gran sol;
Di già con le rosee sue dita
Carezza de' fiori lo stuol!
Commosso da un fremito arcano
Intorno il creato già par;
E tu non ti desti, ed invano
Mi sto qui dolente a cantar.
Metti anche tu la veste bianca
E schiudi l'uscio al tuo cantor!
Ove non sei la luce manca;
Ove tu sei nasce l'amor.
Ove non sei la luce manca;
Ove tu sei nasce l'amor.
The opening lines of Ruggero Leoncavallo's song Mattinata describe the beauty of the sunrise with its soft white light and the touch of the rosy fingers of dawn, as they gently caress the flowers. The singer is moved by an "arcane tremor" that seems to surround nature at this time of day, as if all of creation is awakened by the radiant sun. However, despite this awe-inspiring moment, the singer is disappointed that their lover has not awoken, and they feel the need to express their sadness through song.
The second stanza of the song is a plea to the lover to embrace the beauty of the morning with the singer. The singer implores their lover to put on a white dress and to join them in enjoying the morning's light, emphasizing the role of the lover in the singer's life, claiming that "Where you are, there is the light; where you are, love is born." The singer seems to be suggesting that without the presence of the lover, the beauty of the morning and the light it brings are incomplete, and that love cannot thrive without them.
Overall, the song is a heartfelt expression of the beauty of nature and the importance of love in one's life. It demonstrates the idea that love is as essential as the light of day, and that the two are interconnected in creating a complete sense of beauty and happiness.
Line by Line Meaning
L'aurora di bianco vestita
The dawn is dressed in white
Già l'uscio dischiude al gran sol;
The door is already opening for the sun
Di già con le rosee sue dita
Already, with its rosy fingers
Carezza de' fiori lo stuol!
It caresses the multitude of flowers!
Commosso da un fremito arcano
Moved by a mysterious tremor
Intorno il creato già par;
Around, creation is already bursting;
E tu non ti desti, ed invano
But you don't wake up, and in vain
Mi sto qui dolente a cantar.
I stand here, singing sadly.
Metti anche tu la veste bianca
Put on your white dress too
E schiudi l'uscio al tuo cantor!
And open the door for your singer!
Ove non sei la luce manca;
Where you are not, light is absent;
Ove tu sei nasce l'amor.
Where you are, love is born.
Contributed by Vivian L. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@andyvillalta6576
L'aurora di bianco vestita
Già l'uscio dischiude al gran sol
Di già con le rosee sue dita
Carezza de' fiori lo stuol
Commosso da un fremito arcano
Intorno il creato già par
E tu non ti desti ed invano
Mi sto qui dolente a cantar
Metti anche tu la veste bianca
E schiudi l'uscio al tuo cantor
Ove non sei la luce manca
Ove tu sei nasce l'amor
Commosso da un fremito arcano
Intorno il creato già par
E tu non ti desti ed invano
Mi sto qui dolente a cantar
Ove non sei la luce manca
Ove tu sei nasce l'amor
@user-nd7uj1kh5q
Italian
L'aurora di bianco vestita
Già l'uscio dischiude al gran sol;
Di già con le rosee sue dita
Carezza de' fiori lo stuol!
Commosso da un fremito arcano
Intorno il creato già par;
E tu non-ti desti, ed invano
Mi sto qui dolente a cantar.
Metti anche tu la veste bianca
E schiudi l'uscio al tuo cantor!
Ove non-sei la luce manca;
Ove tu sei nasce l'amor.
Ove non-sei la luce manca;
Ove tu sei nasce l'amor.
@user-nd7uj1kh5q
English translation
The dawn, dressed in white,
has already opened the door to the sun,
and caresses the flowers with its pink fingers.
A mysterious trembling seems to disturb all nature.
And yet you will not get up, and vainly
I stand here sadly singing.
Dress yourself also in white,
and open the door to your serenader!
Where you are not, there is no light;
where you are, love is born.
Where you are not, there is no light;
where you are, love is born.
@acricucci9760
I’m a 75 yr old American lady born & raised in US. I sang Mattinata in Italian when I was 5 yrs old at my aunt + uncle’s wedding reception. I’ve loved it all my life and hearing it sung by Pavarotti thrills my heart!
@carlenejenniferroberts8348
I totally 👍 agree
@firewilson573
Me too I am 70 and sang in Carnegie Hall once in the 1960s
@andyvillalta6576
L'aurora di bianco vestita
Già l'uscio dischiude al gran sol
Di già con le rosee sue dita
Carezza de' fiori lo stuol
Commosso da un fremito arcano
Intorno il creato già par
E tu non ti desti ed invano
Mi sto qui dolente a cantar
Metti anche tu la veste bianca
E schiudi l'uscio al tuo cantor
Ove non sei la luce manca
Ove tu sei nasce l'amor
Commosso da un fremito arcano
Intorno il creato già par
E tu non ti desti ed invano
Mi sto qui dolente a cantar
Ove non sei la luce manca
Ove tu sei nasce l'amor
@joeyjazzjosh
This concert was in Central park, June 1993. There were an estimated 500,000 people in attendance. Incredible, to listen to one man!!
@alfonso2169
CÓMO SE EXTRAÑA A TAN GRAN CANTANTE.
@teresasaleitao2076
Maravilha!!! Espetacular !!!
@ReyelBraz1950
Sono nato il 3 febbraio 1950... nei primi anni della mia vita ho sentito mio padre ascoltare Matinatta e così ho imparato ad apprezzare la musica!❤️
@mushyartuk6045
Mattinata**
@Leofiora
Este tipo me hizo, me hace y me hará llorar de placer y felicidad toda la eternidad. Agradezco haber nacido con la sensibilidad suficiente de poder conmoverme con su calida interpretación sin igual.