IL CONCERTO MUSICALE “F. MORLACCHI” DI CANNARA

(UMBRIA)

HISTORY

This association was born in 1843 with the name of  “Società Filarmonica”, founded by ten young men from Cannara, conducted by Antonio Capodacqua, a choir-master in Spello. Supported by the town council, it obtained the official approval on 24^th October 1846 through a rescriptum written by cardinal Giuseppe Mezzofanti, prefect of the sacred congregation of the Studies in the Papal States, who approved also the regulations of the organization. Among its most important occasions we remember the one on 7^th May 1857 in Spello, for the Pope’s visit Pio IX in Umbria.

    In 1862 there was the first official uniform, according to the pattern of the Guardia Nazionale, and the band changed its name to Corpo di Musica Municipale and changed again its name in 1885 to Concerto Musicale.

fashion plate of the uniform conceived for the “Corpo di Musica Municipale”

This group was conducted by prestigious conductors such as Bellino Belli (1876-1893) and Ermete Stella (1893-1913), and included Giuseppe Savini, one of the most famous musicians and composers in Italy and in Europe expecially in France, where he became the director of the Paris Academy of music, during the 20^th century.

      By the first years of the twentieth century the band became so famous throughout  Umbria that it was often called to play at special events such as the inauguration of a monument in memory of Vittorio Emanuele II (Perugia, September 1890). The arrival  of the conductor Rocco Cristiano (1913-1927) marked a real “golden period”.

The conductor Rocco Cristiano

The staff reached a total of 60 bandsmen and the repertory consisted of about 40 pieces consisting of symphonies, sacred music, polkas, mazurkas and patriotic anthems. The band was called upon for all solemn events throughout Umbria, like the first centenary of the finding of St. Francis’ body (1920) in Assisi. During Fascism, the leaders called on this group for important events of the regime, as in Ancona for the meeting of the black shirts from Emilia Romagna, Marche, Umbria, Abruzzi (October 1922), for the visit of Benito Mussolini in Perugia (5^th October 1926), and the visit of Vittorio Emanuele III to Gubbio (May 1924).

title page of the work “Hail Mary” by E. Stella dedicated to Leo XIII pope (1887)

The name Concerto musicale “Francesco Morlacchi” has been used since 1955; the 50 members of this band, whose average age is below 25, continue a very important tradition which has lasted for more than 160 years, and were conducted during these years by prestigious conductors, like Marco Pontini (1998-2002) and Franco Radicchia (1989-1998). Francesco Verzieri has been the conductor of the band since 2002.

Dr. Alberto Giglietti was the President of the association between 1961 and 2008, when he left his office to Antonio Filippucci. The members of the Governing Council are: Laura Boldrini, Stefano Epifani, Luca Utrio Lanfaloni, Michele Taddei, Francesco Epifani and Alberto Giglietti.

(da Cannara nell’Umbria. La Banda Musicale. Centocinquant’anni, a cura di Fabio Bettoni ed Ottaviano Turrioni, Bastia Umbra 1993)

Translated by Alessandro Bizzarri, Marta Porzi and Cristina Angelini