Busseto
Encyclopedia
Busseto is a comune
in the province of Parma
, in Emilia-Romagna
in Northern Italy
. It was the capital of Stato Pallavicino. Opera
composer
Giuseppe Verdi
was born in the nearby village of Le Roncole and he moved there in 1824. Giovannino Guareschi
also lived in Le Roncole and his Mondo Piccolo was set there.
In the town and the local area many sites associated with the life of Verdi can be visited. These include:
The first portrait of Verdi and an oil depicting Barezzi Antonio is on display in the house. Verdi's letters are also on display. The Casa Barezzi is the headquarters of the Friends of Verdi; the organization oversaw the restoration of the building in 1979 and 1998. Since 2001, there has been a permanent exhibition of objects and documents related to Verdi and his relationship to the Barezzi family.
, not yet his wife, from 1849 to 1851. Verdi composed Luisa Miller
, Stiffelio
and Rigoletto
while living there.
is a small 300-seat theatre built by the municipality with Verdi's support, but not with his approval. However, he did donate money for its completion.
, is the Villa Verdi
, the house which he commissioned in 1848 while living in Busseto and where his parents lived until 1851, after which it became Verdi's home for the rest of his life. However, he lived there less frequently after the death of his wife, Giuseppina, in 1897.
Comune
In Italy, the comune is the basic administrative division, and may be properly approximated in casual speech by the English word township or municipality.-Importance and function:...
in the province of Parma
Province of Parma
The Province of Parma is a province in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Parma.It has an area of 3,449 km², and a total population of 413,198...
, in Emilia-Romagna
Emilia-Romagna
Emilia–Romagna is an administrative region of Northern Italy comprising the two historic regions of Emilia and Romagna. The capital is Bologna; it has an area of and about 4.4 million inhabitants....
in Northern Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. It was the capital of Stato Pallavicino. Opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
Giuseppe Verdi
Giuseppe Verdi
Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi was an Italian Romantic composer, mainly of opera. He was one of the most influential composers of the 19th century...
was born in the nearby village of Le Roncole and he moved there in 1824. Giovannino Guareschi
Giovannino Guareschi
Giovannino Oliviero Giuseppe Guareschi was an Italian journalist, cartoonist and humorist whose most famous creation is the priest Don Camillo.-Life and career:...
also lived in Le Roncole and his Mondo Piccolo was set there.
Main sites
Casa Barezzi
Close by the main square is the home of Antonio Barezzi, the man who supported his early endeavours. He became both Verdi's patron and his father-in-law. In the upstairs lounge, the young Verdi gave his first public performance in 1830 and continued to frequent the house until the death of his benefactor.The first portrait of Verdi and an oil depicting Barezzi Antonio is on display in the house. Verdi's letters are also on display. The Casa Barezzi is the headquarters of the Friends of Verdi; the organization oversaw the restoration of the building in 1979 and 1998. Since 2001, there has been a permanent exhibition of objects and documents related to Verdi and his relationship to the Barezzi family.
Churches of Santa Maria degli Angeli and San Michele Arcangelo
Both churches are nearby. These are where Verdi played the organ.Palazzo Orlandi
This is the house which Verdi bought in 1845. He lived there with Giuseppina StrepponiGiuseppina Strepponi
Clelia Maria Josepha Strepponi was a nineteenth century Italian operatic soprano of great renown and the second wife of composer Giuseppe Verdi...
, not yet his wife, from 1849 to 1851. Verdi composed Luisa Miller
Luisa Miller
Luisa Miller is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Salvadore Cammarano, based on the play Kabale und Liebe by Friedrich von Schiller. The first performance was given at the Teatro San Carlo in Naples on December 8, 1849...
, Stiffelio
Stiffelio
Stiffelio is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi, from an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave, based on the play Le pasteur, ou L'évangile et le foyer by Émile Souvestre and Eugène Bourgeois...
and Rigoletto
Rigoletto
Rigoletto is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi. The Italian libretto was written by Francesco Maria Piave based on the play Le roi s'amuse by Victor Hugo. It was first performed at La Fenice in Venice on March 11, 1851...
while living there.
Teatro Giuseppe Verdi
The Teatro Giuseppe VerdiTeatro Giuseppe Verdi
Teatro Giuseppe Verdi is a small opera house located in a wing of the Rocca dei Marchesi Pallavicino on the Piazza Giuseppe Verdi in Busseto, Italy, a town closely associated with the life of the opera composer, Giuseppe Verdi...
is a small 300-seat theatre built by the municipality with Verdi's support, but not with his approval. However, he did donate money for its completion.
Villa Verdi
In the nearby village of Sant'Agata, in the province of PiacenzaProvince of Piacenza
The Province of Piacenza is a province in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Piacenza.The province has 273,689 inhabitants . Its total area is 2,589 km². There are 48 comuni in the province, see Comuni of the Province of Piacenza...
, is the Villa Verdi
Villa Verdi
Villa Verdi is the house that composer Giuseppe Verdi owned from 1848 to the end of his life in 1901. Itis located in the village of Sant'Agata in the commune of Villanova sull'Arda in the Italian province of Piacenza less than two miles from the village of Le Roncole, where he was born in 1813,...
, the house which he commissioned in 1848 while living in Busseto and where his parents lived until 1851, after which it became Verdi's home for the rest of his life. However, he lived there less frequently after the death of his wife, Giuseppina, in 1897.