Once upon a time in the Kingdom of Belgium there was a gentleman who dreamed of bringing classical music to young people and of giving space to emerging artists. Then the war broke out, neutral Belgium was invaded, but in 1945 the war ended and he did not wait even a day to give life to his desire to make his dream come true.
He was Maurice Curbelier, an eclectic character with a degree in law, who participated in the 1920 and 1924 Olympics as a fencer and then took over the direction of the Belgian Philharmonic. He called his creation Jeunesses Musicales International (JMI) and young people joined in droves, they wanted to listen to music that did not sound like bombs and cannons.
The Jeunesses Musicales blossomed in Belgium and like a weed it spread, even to France, England, Holland. While devastated Europe was being rebuilt, the JMI represented joy and the desire to live. In 1952 it also took root in Italy under the aegis of Baroness Doroty Lanny della Quara and took the name of Gioventù Musicale Italiana.
Like Curbelier, the baroness put her soul into this idea, she put her political and musical knowledge and also a lot of money. The early days in Milan were heroic, young talents who later became famous played at the Sala Verdi. For example, the young Abbado and Muti conducted. The association brought the most famous musicians on stage such as Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli, Uto Ughi, Sviatoslav Richter and the Sala Verdi was packed to the rafters to listen to them. Some, like Sviatoslav Richter, followed the GMI for a long time and helped participate in its management.
Nowadays, there is little talk about it, but JMI is still vital, so much so that the member countries have reached 70, integrating the panorama with ethnic music from South America and Africa, and also with jazz. In their time, Giorgio Gaslini and Lino Patruno played. The strength of JMI and Gioventù Musicale Italiana lies in its widespread diffusion throughout the territory and in its contacts with the World Federation of Competitions and with non-federated competitions. It means that young musicians who have won international and Italian competitions come to play here, they play in small towns that would never have hosted a music star.
In Todi, Lucia Mencaroni managed to bring the winner of the 2024 Busoni Award Arsenji Moon. Since 2013, when Lucia Mencaroni took over the Todi venue, the winners of the most important international competitions have played here, such as the violinist Yekwoon Sunwoo of the Paganini, the winner of the van Cliburn piano competition, the Umbrian accordionist Samuele Telari, winner of the Castelfidardo award.
The number of artists is so great that the Municipality of Todi with the School of Music and the Gioventù Musicale has opened the Note D’estate festival. The success of the GMI initiative is linked precisely to Lucia Mencaroni, a profound connoisseur of music and with a long experience gained in Milan, where it all began.
Of course, these concerts do not have Taylor Swift numbers, but slowly the audience of listeners is expanding and young people are discovering that even music other than pop and rock is worth listening to. Todi is one of the small centers that make high-level culture in the field of music and contemporary art. Too bad that from Todi down there is nothing left.
Anyway, Todi never sleeps and the next concert will be on September 24th, at 6 pm, at Palazzo del Vignola. We will go to listen to a pianist of only 7 years old Alberto Cartuccia Cingolani who they call the little Mozart and who has already made appearances on TV. Listen to him on YouTube and then come to Palazzo del Vignola.
Redazione
Latest posts by Redazione (see all)
- Rocciata - September 26, 2024
- Gioventù Musicale brings top-notch musicians to Todi, thanks to Lucia Mencaroni - September 11, 2024
- Risotto with roses - June 20, 2024