Giuseppe Verdi was born in 1813 in Le Roncole and died in Milan in 1901. He was the son of a poor innkeeper and grocer. His earliest musical experiences were hearing strolling musicians and singing in the local church choir. The organist provided music lessons and Verdi took over from him in 1823, combining the organist’s duties with weekly boarding at school in nearby Busseto, where he found a patron, Barezzi. Busseto’s cathedral organist gave Verdi further training and his first compositions were performed in 1828 and 1829. Verdi went to Milan in 1831 with a scholarship, later received an allowance from the Philosophical Society, and his first opera, Oberto, was produced at La Scala in 1839. His second opera was unsuccessful – its composition coincided with the death of his first wife and two children. But then came Nabucco, and his reputation went from strength to strength.