Emmanuele Borgatta: pianist and composer from Ovada

Life

His entire creative arc, from formation to full maturity, consistently took place within the great stream of Italian Romanticism, reaching into the thresholds of post-unification Realism.

Born in Ovada in 1809, Borgatta dedicated himself to the study of the piano and composition, distinguishing himself as both a performer and an author. His musical abilities led him to be appreciated in the Piedmontese cultural circle and to contribute to the musical life of his city.

Aneddoto

Music in the salons of Ovada

Borgatta was often invited to play in the noble houses of Ovada, where his piano pieces were greeted with enthusiasm for their brilliant and melodious character.

Works

He composed numerous piano pieces, including fantasies and variations, which were highly appreciated in the cultured salons of the era.

He also wrote vocal romances and chamber pieces that reflect the 19th-century sensitivity for intimate and refined melody.

His production, though not vast, remains a precious testimony to the Piedmontese musical culture of the 19th century.

Briciole di storia

The echo of the Paris revolution

The "Three Glorious Days" of July 1830, which led to the fall of the reactionary King Charles X in Paris and the rise of the "bourgeois king" Louis Philippe of Orléans, had an immense echo throughout Europe, including Italy. Italian liberals, disillusioned and inactive for a decade, were rekindled with hope. The belief spread—later revealed to be an illusion—that France would not allow Austria to intervene to suppress any liberal movements on the peninsula. This hope prompted conspirators, particularly the young Ciro Menotti in Modena, to reorganize secret societies and prepare those insurrectional plans that would erupt the following year.