Life
His training took place during the period of post-unification Realism, while his long career led him to reach full maturity in an era of avant-gardes, in which the aestheticism of Decadentism, the suggestions of Symbolism, and the radical disruption of Futurism coexisted.
Dionigio Canestrari was born in 1865 in San Martino Buon Albergo, then under the Austrian Empire. Raised in a wealthy family, he studied piano and organ with local masters and then in Verona, soon showing talent and discipline. In 1897 he obtained his Piano License at the Royal Music Lyceum of Pesaro, with Pietro Mascagni as president of the commission. The following year he obtained his Magisterium Diploma.
He thus began a career as a teacher and organist, playing in numerous churches in the diocese of Verona, particularly in Soave, where he could practice on the new Trice organ. In parallel, he developed a dense compositional production, establishing himself as one of the most esteemed organists in Europe and winning national and international awards, such as that of Nantes in 1922.
He was in epistolary contact with prominent personalities such as Alexandre Guilmant, organist and professor at the Paris Conservatory. His sacred music, appreciated for its spiritual depth and technical rigor, also spread abroad thanks to the work of a missionary nephew. He died in Verona in 1933.
Aneddoto
International Awards
In 1922, Canestrari won first prize in Nantes for a two-voice mass, surpassing over 1200 competitors, confirming his prestige at a European level.Works
Author of hundreds of compositions, Canestrari dedicated himself in particular to masses, motets, hymns, and music for organ and harmonium. He also wrote a Treatise on Harmony accompanied by practical examples. Among his most famous sacred works are Missa miserere nostri Domine, Messa Sine labe concepta, Missa in honorem B.M.V. consolatrix afflictorum, Servizio per la Messa, Elegit te Dominus, as well as numerous Tantum ergo and pastoral songs like A Gesù bambino. He also composed intermezzos for piano and concert pieces for organ, all characterized by deep spirituality and melodic impulse.
Briciole di storia
Birth of the Pizza Margherita, a Tricolor for the Queen
In June 1889, during a visit to Naples, Queen Margherita of Savoy, tired of the complex French cuisine served at court, expressed a desire to taste pizza. The city's most famous pizza maker, Raffaele Esposito, was summoned to Palazzo Capodimonte. He prepared three pizzas, but the one that won the Queen over was a creation designed specifically for her, whose ingredients recalled the Italian flag: tomato (red), mozzarella (white), and basil (green). The Queen enjoyed it so much that Esposito, in her honor, christened the creation "Pizza Margherita." Thus, almost by chance, the world's most famous and beloved pizza was born.
Pubblico dominio (Commons)
