Life
Trained at the height of Verdian Romanticism, his long and prestigious career led him to reach full artistic maturity during the post-unification Realism period, extending into the era of Decadentism.
Lucio Campiani was born in Mantua in 1822 to Michele, an oboist, and Anna Cella, a pianist. He received his first musical education in his family, encouraged by Rossini, a friend of his father. Moving to Bologna, he entered the Music Lyceum directed by Rossini, who considered him one of his favorite pupils, calling him “his little genius.”
In 1843, his first sacred compositions were successfully performed in the Basilica of San Giacomo in Bologna. He also tried his hand at theater with Cristoforo Colombo, encouraged by Rossini himself. After graduating, he returned to Mantua, where he worked as a teacher, maestro di cappella, and director of the Teatro Sociale.
He debuted as an opera composer with Alberto di Saviola (1848), followed by Elvira di Valenza (1850), Il Taldo (1852), Bernabò Visconti (1854, Cremona; then Milan), and Il Consiglio dei Dieci (1857, Treviso; then Trieste). All were received with enthusiasm and published by Casa Lucca. Amilcare Ponchielli encouraged him to continue his theatrical activity.
He was the maestro di cappella of the Mantua Cathedral, director of the Teatro Sociale, and a professor at the newly formed Mantua School of Music from 1864. He composed over thirty masses, including one for the Martyrs of Belfiore, and many vespers, motets, and hymns. In 1866, he wrote two popular hymns for the return of Victor Emmanuel II to Mantua, receiving a diamond brooch as a gift from the sovereign.
For over forty years, he trained generations of Mantuan musicians, including famous singers like Storchio and Trentini. He died in 1914 at the age of 92, leaving a musical and educational heritage that the city preserves with pride.
Aneddoto
The King's gift
In 1866, after setting two hymns for the liberation of Mantua to music, Victor Emmanuel II thanked him by gifting him a diamond brooch featuring the royal crown.Works
Campiani composed five theatrical works: Alberto di Saviola (1848, Mantua), Elvira di Valenza (1850, Mantua and Ravenna), Il Taldo (1852, Mantua; 1853, Padua), Bernabò Visconti (1854, Cremona; later Milan), and Il Consiglio dei Dieci (1857, Treviso; 1858, Trieste). In the sacred field, he left over thirty masses, vespers, hymns, motets, and litanies, which were frequently performed in Mantuan churches.
Briciole di storia
The "Liberal Pope"
On June 16, 1846, following the death of the reactionary Gregory XVI, Cardinal Giovanni Maria Mastai Ferretti was elected Pope and took the name Pius IX. His election was a surprise, and his first moves sparked a wave of enthusiasm throughout Italy. Just a month later, he granted a broad amnesty for political prisoners, an act that seemed to confirm his reputation as a liberal. Figures like Gioberti, who dreamed of a united Italy under the leadership of a reforming papacy, saw in him the man of Providence. For nearly two years, the cry "Long live Pius IX!" resounded in all squares, uniting patriots and the faithful in a hope for freedom that tragically foundered with the events of 1848.
Pubblico dominio (Commons)
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