Antoni Pizà,

Professor of Musicology at The City University of NY 

Italy, Italy, Italy

Whether it is opera or songs, Italy has made a unique and definitive contribution to the world of vocal art, a fact that cannot be denied. Florence was the place where a few enlightened aristocrats, the Florentine Camerata, “invented” opera at the end of the 16^th century.  Some regional traditions, such as the Neapolitan song, are as original as they are alive and more popular than ever. Enrico Caruso, an Italian singer, was one of the first stars of the early 20th-century recording industry,  popularising commercial songs and opera arias in both Italian and English. If Caruso were alive today, he would have Instagram, be an influencer and have shoe brands bearing his name.

The very first song on today’s programme, “Mattinata” by Ruggero Leoncavallo (1857–1919), was written for Caruso’s sultry voice. Leoncavallo had a peripatetic life. He was Italian by birth and lived in Egypt and then in the bohemian Montmartre at the end of the  19^th century. Once settled in Milan, he was captivated by a then-new style of opera, Verismo, whose plots tended to reflect the most gruesome aspects of modern life:  crimes of passion, violence, slums, marginal characters and so on. This is when he composed Pagliacci (1892), which includes the aria “Vesti la giubba”.  The recording by Caruso sold more than a million copies at a time when practically no one owned a simple gramophone. Leoncavallo composed “Mattinata” (1904), especially for Caruso, on the strength of this success. Almost 120 years have passed, and the song is still sung all over the world.  Not bad, really.

Most Italian composers produced both ballroom song and opera, and Stefano Donaudy (1879–1925) was no exception to the rule.  Today, however, his operas have been forgotten, while almost all modern voices still sing his songs. Practically all of his songs were collected and published in a not very extensive collection entitled 36 Arie de Stile Antico. It seems that one of them, “Vaghissima sembianza“, was written when he was 13 years old!  Other songs, written later and also compiled in this same collection, such as “Freschi luoghi, prati aulenti” and “O del mio amato ben“, remain staples of the singers’ repertoire and are still appreciated by audiences.

Ottorino Respighi (1879–1936) is known today for three spectacular orchestral works: Fountains of Rome (1916), Pines of Rome (1924) and Festivals of Rome (1928). These compositions reflect his earlier studies with Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, a composer and teacher known especially for his colourful orchestrations, which create almost firework-like sound effects. However, Respighi also wrote songs very successfully and today’s selection (“Lagrime”, “Scherzo”, “Stornellatrice”, “Nevicata”, “Pioggia”, “Nebbie”) is an excellent example. In 1932 his appointment as an “academic” by the Italian Fascist government meant that in later decades his music, although of unquestionable quality, was, so to speak, subjected to quarantine. Be that as it may, today, both the orchestral works of drum and cymbals and the sensual songs are appreciated fairly and without objection or any political consideration.

Although Italian through and through, Francesco Paolo Tosti (1846–1916) achieved remarkable success in the UK, especially among the royal family, the aristocracy and the gentry. The need of these wealthy classes to offer musical evenings led them to promote what we might call drawing-room music: works for a small group of instruments and very often simply for voice and piano. Tosti, a musician of exquisite taste, was able to respond with dozens of highly melodic, sentimental, emotionally intense songs that, in a matter of three or four minutes, express a basic, essential human emotion. Examples of this style are “L’ultima canzone“, “Chi sei tu che mi parli” and the very popular “Ideale“.  Incidentally, Carusso also popularised “A Vucchella“, possibly still Tosti’s most famous work.

In addition to the genre of “loose” or independent song, Italy is the country of opera, without, of course, to the detriment of other national traditions. An aria, as is well known, is a song that is part of an opera. For example, the character Riccardo (tenor) sings the aria “Di tú se fedele y flutter m’aspetta” from one of Giuseppe Verdi’s last operas (1913–01), Un ballo in maschera.  This opera chronicles scheming to assassinate the governor of Boston (Riccardo), the fateful love between him and Amelia, and the crime of passion of her husband (Renato). In “Quando le sere al placido“, Rodolfo’s aria in the opera Luisa Miller, we find again stories of lovers who will never see their love fully realised. Finally, “Recondita armonia” is an aria from Cavaradosi Tosca by Giacomo Puccini (1858–1924).  Scarpia dreams of securing the sexual favours of Tosca, a famous singer, and wants to convince her by torturing her lover.  Beyond #MeToo, Scarpia’s case today would deserve prison. Actually, in this case, he is a policeman – the chief of police!