SUMMER NOTES FROM ITALY (June 21-July 1, 2009)

PICTURE: Group and banner

Bravo, Maryland Youth Symphony Orchestra………our third concert tour of Italy and another unparalleled success. As part of the Alba Music Festival, four concerts were performed in the area, as well as time scheduled for sightseeing. The Alba Music Festival was built out of the close relationship between the City of Alba and St. Mary’s College of Maryland. The Festival was created and is directed by Giuseppe Nova, Jeff Silberschlag, and Larry Vote, renowned artists whose distinguished backgrounds on the international stage contribute greatly to this extraordinary celebration of music. Alba is a small town in Piedmont in the province of Cuneo. It is considered the capital of the hilly area of Langhe, famous for its white truffle, peach and wine production. The confectionery group Ferrero is based in Alba.

After rehearsals in the beautiful church of San Domenico and becoming acquainted with Alba, with its narrow cobbled streets, interesting shops and outdoor cafés we took a tour to the surrounding region with its castles, hills and famous vineyards.

Grinzane castle was our first stop. Grinzane is a tiny town in Piedmont, not far from Alba. However, it played a major part in Italian history: Count Camillo Benso di Cavour, the architect of Italian unity, gained his first political experience in the town as mayor.

When Cavour was appointed mayor of Grinzane, he had no place to stay, so his father bought him the town's major landmark, the XIII century fortress perched on top of the hill. It's imposing, and the view is spectacular. The region is incredibly beautiful with panoramic views of hills and vineyards. It was possible to have a brief wine tasting of the famous Barolo wines.

For wine and Italian cuisine at its most elegant, it doesn't get any better than Piedmont. It is also rich in history, as the story of Barolo is intertwined with kings, prime ministers, and marchesi. It's also rich in culinary delights: truffles, mountain cheeses, and hazelnuts are regional treats. But at center stage is Piedmont's stunning array of wines, with Barolo and Barbaresco at the pinnacle.

On the way to Cremona, where our first concert was performed, a stop was made to visit the birthplace and home of Giuseppe Verdi born in 1813 in Le Roncole. We were also able to visit the church of San Michele Archangelo where Verdi played the organ at the age of twelve. In Cremona there was time to visit the Duomo and the Stradivari Collection and Museum where violins of Andrea Amati (ca. 1500-1576), Geroamo Amati (1562-1630), Niccolò Amati (1596-1684), Giuseppe Guarneri (1698-1744) and
Antonio Stradivari (1644-1737) were displayed.

Verdi's birthplace and home

The evening concert was sponsored by the Antonio Stradavari Society, followed by dinner in the historic government building overlooking the moonlit Piazza Duomo.

Visit the Auditorium della Camera di Commercio, piazza Duoma and our first concert venue on YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MQ3C8E9zi1g

Early next morning we left for our second concert in Aosta in the Italian Alps, an area of breathtaking beauty and a landscape dotted with castles.

Valle d'Aosta is one of the regions with semi-autonomy from Rome and central Government. Both the literature and road signs are in Italian and French.

It is the smallest of the Italian regions and also the least populous. Packed within this small and almost exclusively mountainous region are Mont Blanc and the Matterhorn (and the Mont Blanc tunnel). Dual language, under-populated and very much a crossroads ... much of this is down to geography and history. Continental Europe is divided from Italy by the imposing barrier of the Alps. Such isolation shaped the region. From the earliest times, this area was a hugely important gateway, both strategically and economically. He who held Valle d'Aosta earned good money from the continuous stream of merchants and pilgrims, early day tourists heading to Venice, Florence and Rome. Militarily, holding the passes conferred huge strategic power.

Today, the religious pilgrims have been largely replaced by those on vacation in Valle d'Aosta. Good for skiing in winter and with beautiful walking in summer. The slopes are covered in firs and pines, with rhododendrons and junipers, edelweiss, gentians and buttercups. The lower slopes of the main valley are clad in birch, hazel and sycamore woods, orchards and vineyards.

The highlight was the funicular ride up the mountain to The Fortress of Bard where an amazing museum engages all of the senses in learning the history and life of the Alps.

A free day took the group to Torino where we visited the famous Egyptian Museum, saw the RAI building and visited the Museo del Cinema.

Our third concert took place in Portofino on the Italian Riviera where the MYSO opened the Portofino Classica International Music Festival.

For three of our concerts the program was Verdi’s Nabucco Overture, Grieg’s Piano Concerto (Brian Ganz, Piano) and Dvorák’s New World Symphony. In Portofino the Grieg and Verdi were replaced by Purcell’s trumpet Concerto with our principal trumpet Zach Silberschlag playing solo. Also Haydn’s Concertante featuring principal violin, Sean Symon; principal oboe, Katie Heilman and principal bassoon, Jacqui Symon.

Portofino

Portofino is a town boasting some of the priciest real estate in Italy. Its narrow, cobbled streets lead to a picturesque harbor where the yachts of the rich and famous like to dock.

Our day trip to Milano was particularly memorable. Here there was something to please everyone – the beautiful cathedral, Ricordi Music store, shopping: Gucci, Prada, Escada etc. The highlight was the visit to La Scala where we were able to see the interior of the theatre and tour La Scala Museum.

Angelo Gatto's teacher Victor De Sabata at La Scala Museum

We performed our last triumphant concert in our home base of Alba to a packed house. Later that night or early morning we boarded the bus for the airport in Torino. It was ten days of presenting the very best of American youth to the people of Italy with exceptional playing and courteous behavior. For the orchestra members it was a time of forging new friendships and experiencing the culture and beauty of Italy.