Saturday, May 31, 2008

Mascagni Course in Sydney this October

I recently got the following from Murray Dahm in Sydney:
"I thought you would like to know that I will be teaching a course on the operas of Mascagni in Sydney, Australia starting this October. It will run for 7 two hour sessions over seven weeks and examine all the operas, Si, and the orchestral, song and minor works that I have located. The courses I run are for the WEA (Workers Education Association) and generally have 40 students (mostly retirees) per course"
If anybody around Sydney has any interest, please contact me and I will put you in touch with Murray.

A Rare Photo of Mascagni at the Piano

Here is a rare picture of Mascagni at the piano which I recently acquired. The handwritten text on the back of the picture says that it was taken in Rome by "Ettore Patrini, editor & [...]" (last name and function are hard to read). A number on the back could read "17", for 1917. To be broad, I think that the picture was taken between 1900 and 1920, but I have trouble pinpointing an exact year.

On the full-size picture, you can see that Mascagni is smoking a little cigar, as is typical. The quality of the picture doesn't allow seeing what is on the score.

For more photos of Mascagni, see Mascagni at the Piano.

Update: Roger pointed out to me that this is the same piano and location as in this photo. If the information is correct and this was in fact taken during Isabeau's composition, or even at Illica's villa in Castell'Arquato, then it is likely that the two photos were taken not far apart. The composition of Isabeau started in late 1908, and the opera premiered in 1911, which gives us a better range. If it was in Castell'Arquato, then it was likely during June 1910.