To celebrate the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between India and Italy a series of cultural exchanges to commemorate the occasion have been planned in India which include exhibitions and music.
On 18th March the chamber orchestra “Cameristi della Scala”, formed by the musicians of the orchestra of Teatro alla Scala di Milano made their debut in New Delhi with a Concert at Stein Auditorium, India Habitat Centre (IHC). Cameristi della Scala together with Laura Marzadori as the soloist will stage Concerts in Calcutta and Mumbai too and the program includes music by Rossini, Paganini, Sivori and Bazzini.
Dr Andrea Baldi, Director Italian Embassy Cultural Centre shared, “The classical music is one of the great cultural products for export that Italy has produced with plenty of masterpieces during its glorious cultural history. Music is also known to be the most transversal artistic expression among different cultures. When this is interpreted by a group so refined and universally known and recognised as the musicians of the La Scala Chamber Orchestra, chosen to represent the highlight of the celebrations of the 70 years of diplomatic relations between Italy and India, it becomes easy.”
“Although the group’s musicians are part of the Scala Orchestra, they form an independent group. There is also a fundamental difference, due precisely to the fact that they are called Cameristi, means they are a group of chamber music, which is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of instruments-traditionally a group that could fit in a palace chamber. Chamber music normally does not have a director, and has a limited number of instruments. The orchestra instead performs in theaters, includes all types of instruments and requires a direction” continued Dr Baldi.
“Our upcoming Indian tour will be an extremely exciting experience for us since it’s the first time we visit and perform in your country. We will perform the Indian National Anthem at the Italian Embassy which will be a night to celebrate the relationship between Italy and India. We have chosen some of the most famous themes from Opera (the fantasy on the themes of Traviata and Trovatore) as well as our violin virtuoso Nicolò Paganini. We have also paid attention to the 20th century by choosing a composition from Nino Rota who wrote the wonderful soundtrack for the famous movie “Il Gattopardo”. Our young soloist, Laura Marzadori, is not only the concertmaster of Teatro alla Scala but also a very well known soloist” said Roberto Nigro, Coordinamento Generale, Cameristi della Scala.
“The message we bring for Indians is that we can’t wait to visit your country for the first time. The program we have chosen is a taste of three centuries of Italian musical inspiration. We hope the audiences will enjoy it and feel our pure joy of making music together while we drink a sip of your magic atmosphere” continued Roberto.
The chamber orchestra “Cameristi della Scala” was founded in 1982. The orchestra has a unique identity in which they regularly perform in the formation with and without a conductor. Its core repertoire includes many masterpieces written for chamber orchestra from the 18th century to the present day, in addition to promoting and championing works by the lesser known Italian composers.