Aldo Finzi, an Italian Jewish composer, was denied a competition win at La Scala in 1938 due to an anticipated government veto, foreshadowing the racial laws that soon followed.
Composer Biography
Vito Levi, a Jewish composer from Trieste, lost his teaching position and music critic job in 1938 due to racial laws, forcing him to give private lessons and translate librettos under a pseudonym.
Composer Biography
Leone Sinigaglia, a composer whose works were championed by Arturo Toscanini, died of a heart attack in 1944 when Fascist militiamen came to arrest him.
Composer Biography
Aldo Finzi composed a Psalm for choir and orchestra between 1944 and 1945 to thank God for saving him and his son after he bribed SS and Fascist militias to secure their release.
Historical Context
The album features works from 'Degenerate Music', a term used by the Viktor Ullmann Festival, the only festival in Europe devoted to concentrationary, degenerate, and exile music.
Instruments
Giacobbe Stevanato, the solo violinist, plays an 'Antonio Stradivari Marlborough 1718' violin, which is on loan from a private collection.
Recording & Production
This album includes the first worldwide recording of Vito Levi's Concerto per violino ed orchestra and Leone Sinigaglia's concerto for flute and orchestra.
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