Puccini, Ricordi and the Rise of the Modern Entertainment Industry

Concerto liederistico “Dare voce a Ricordi”

in collaboration with PianoSofia Festival
Biblioteca Nazionale Braidense, Milan - Sala Lettura

The Lieder concert “Dare voce a Ricordi” opens the PianoSofia festival and is part of the first public programme of the exhibition “Puccini - Opera Meets New Media”, organised by the Archivio Storico Ricordi and Bertelsmann, which will take place at the Museo Teatrale alla Scala on 24 October, on the occasion of the centenary of Giacomo Puccini's death.

The concert offers a sound journey through opera and memory, paying tribute to the great composer. The soprano Caroline Wenborne and the pianist Silvia Lomazzi will perform on stage, presenting a fascinating and varied programme that includes works by Puccini, Richard Strauss and Aldo Finzi.

Aldo Massimo Finzi, together with Pierluigi Ledda, Silvia Lomazzi and Luca Ciammarughi, will talk before the concert to share his memories. To complete the experience, readings will be by Annina Pedrini.

Talk “Puccini Digitale”

in collaboration with MEET and Teatro alla Scala
MEET Digital Culture Center, Milan

The event “Puccini Digitale” proposes to explore how the digital can orient the knowledge of Giacomo Puccini and “reactivate” his musical production in new forms. In the year that marks the centenary of his death, the conversation will focus on his impact on the contemporary scene and how current technologies can enrich the research, dissemination and enjoyment of his works. This conversation, dedicated to the great composer, will take place in MEET's Immersive Room.

The initiative is part of the public programme of the exhibition “Puccini - Opera Meets New Media”, promoted by the Archivio Storico Ricordi, Bertelsmann and Teatro alla Scala.

Presentation of the exhibition with the curator

in collaboration with Teatro alla Scala
c/o Istituto Italiano di Cultura, London

Gabriele Dotto, curator of the exhibition and scientific director of the Archivio Storico Ricordi, presents “Opera Meets New Media”, recently opened in Berlin. 
The exhibition, realized by Bertelsmann and the Archivio Storico Ricordi, will be staged in Milan at the Museo Teatrale alla Scala from 24 October to 12 January, on the occasion of the centenary of Puccini's death.

Curated by Gabriele Dotto together with musicologists Christy Thomas Adams and Ellen Lockhart, “Opera Meets New Media” reflects on the influences that technological innovations had on musical theatre at the beginning of the 20th century, marking a real revolution in the enjoyment of music, which until then was only accessible live.

Festival “Puccini e il Cinema” and Talk

in collaboration with Cineteca Milano
c/o Cinema Arlecchino, Milan

The Archivio Storico Ricordi presents the exhibition “Puccini e il Cinema”, realized in collaboration with the Cineteca Milano. This special event, organized on the occasion of the exhibition “Puccini - Opera Meets New Media”, explores how cinema has reread and reinterpreted the works of Giacomo Puccini. The screenings are enriched by meetings with experts, offering the public a unique opportunity to discover the relationship between opera and cinema.

Editathon Puccini

in collaboration with Wikimedia Italia
c/o Teatro alla Scala, Milan - Sala Gialla

On 12 November there will be an edit-a-thon in collaboration with the Teatro alla Scala and Wikimedia Italia, dedicated to the enrichment of entries related to the musical theatre of the early 20th century. This event is organized on the occasion of the exhibition “Opera Meets New Media” realized by the Archivio Storico Ricordi and Bertelsmann, which will take place at the Museo Teatrale alla Scala from 24 October, on the occasion of the centenary of Giacomo Puccini's death. The exhibition reflects on the influence that technological innovations had on musical theatre at the beginning of the 20th century, marking a real revolution in the enjoyment of music, which until then was only accessible live. The edit-a-thon will take place in the Sala Gialla of the Teatro alla Scala from 10:00 am to 18:00 pm.

Presentation of the Project „Engraving Memory“

in collaboration with Tipoteca Italiana
c/o Biblioteca Nazionale Braidense

The Archivio Storico Ricordi presents the “Engraving Memory” project, realized in collaboration with the Tipoteca Italiana. This event, to be held at the Biblioteca Nazionale Braidense, will highlight the historical and artistic value of the printing plates of Casa Ricordi, which were spared by the bombing in 1943.

The presentation will highlight how these plates, preserved in the Archivio Storico Ricordi, were used to reprint musical works engraved over a century ago, creating unique documents celebrating the art of engraving. Through this project, the aim is to highlight the importance of musical memory and the craft tradition linked to printing, uniting past and present in a cultural dialogue that continues to inspire.