| After a decade of neglect,
Rome's classical music scene is starting to find its feet again.Though local talent is a
bit thin on the ground, Rome plays host to some of the world's top musical names,
especially in the two world-class international chamber music seasons at the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia and the Accademia
Filarmonica. |
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| Named after the patron
saint of music, the Accademia
Nazionale di Santa Cecilia is Rome's main musical establishment and most prestigious music academy. It has
had many homes and functions since it was founded by the sixteenth-century composer
Palestrina, but for the time being it's based at the Auditorio Pio. Bruno Cagli, the
academy's current president, first raised the level of guest conductors to include names
like Carlo Maria Giulini, Wolfgang Sawallisch, Valery Gergiev, Georges Pretre and Pierre
Boulez, and then secured the appointment of Myung-Whung Chung as principal conductor.
Famous for having revamped Paris's Bastille opera, Chung is expected to provide the
orchestra with a much-needed overhaul and a longed-for recording contract with Deutsche
Grammophon. |
| Cagli has also brought the
venerable old institution up to date, with world-class programmes, autumn festivals
dedicated to single composers, and a pioneering commitment to classical/popular
cross-overs with artists such as Keith Jarret and Michael Nyman. Programming of the summer
season at the remarkable outdoor venue in Villa Giulia is always thoughtful and
imaginative. |
| The Accademia
Filarmonica was founded in 1821, and included among its early members Rossini,
Donizetti, Paganini and Verdi. Traditionally it combines the activities of a choir school
(with a repertoire which reflects the dubious musical taste of its director, Father Pablo
Colino) with a season of mainly chamber music. Revitalised by its previous artistic
director, Paolo Arcà, the concert programme now extends to multi-media events (among them
the popular Momix Dance Theatre), chamber opera performances, and some contemporary music.
The appointment of veteran Massimo Bogianckino, who has held every job worth having in the
Italian music world, as artistic director will probably mean less experimentation but no
decline in quality. The concert season runs from mid-October to mid-May in one of the
Accademia's own venues, Teatro Olimpico. |
| A third institution, the
Istituzione Universitaria dei Concerti (IUC), was founded after the last war in the hope
of bringing a bit of life to Rome's culturally-dead campus. Today the IUC offers a varied
season built around a standard programme of international and Italian recitals and chamber
music, usually mounted at its main auditorium, the Aula Magna. There's a refreshing
emphasis on ancient music, classical/popular cross-overs, and music with distinct sound
textures. The IUC serves a mixed audience, with numerous elderly subscribers drawn by the
afternoon concerts, and students and university staff on cut-rate subscriptions. It is
also a forum for Rome débuts for young international competition winners and composers. |
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| As for the once glorious Teatro
dell'Opera, it hit rock bottom in the first half of the 1990s, but the
appointment of the dynamic Sergio Escobar has brought it back from the brink. Standards
are still variable and seats are not cheap, but the good productions can be very good
indeed. |
| Work is finally under way on Renzo
Piano's new world-class auditorium, a vast three-hall complex in the northern suburbs
which is scheduled to be in service for the 1999-2000 season. And none too soon either:
Rome has been without a real concert hall since 1936, when Mussolini demolished the famed
Augusteo to expose what was left of the emperor's family mausoleum. |
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