Gaetano Giuffrè (born

Corfu Corfu ( , ) or Kerkyra (, ) is a Greece, Greek island in the Ionian Sea, of the Ionian Islands; including its Greek islands, small satellite islands, it forms the margin of Greece's northwestern frontier. The island is part of the Corfu (regio ...

, 14 September 1918 – 8 January 2018) was an

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-Swiss

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and def ...

and

maestro Maestro (; from the Italian '' maestro'' , meaning " master" or "teacher," plural: maestros or maestri) is an honorific title of respect, sometimes abbreviated Mo. The term is most commonly used in the context of Western classical music and oper ...

whose father was Giovanni Giuffrè, also a

and

born in

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

Biography

Born into a musical family, Giuffrè began playing violin and piano with his father at the age of 4 until he became an adult at the age of 18. In 1936, he moved to Athens to study composition with George Sklavos and Dimitri Mitropulos, focusing on fugues and counterpoints. In 1939, he moved to Rome and studied at the

Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia The Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia () is one of the oldest musical institutions in the world, founded by the papal bull ''Ratione congruit'', issued by Sixtus V in 1585, which invoked two saints prominent in Western musical history: Gre ...

where he was one of the students of renown composer,

Alfredo Casella Alfredo Casella (25 July 18835 March 1947) was an Italian composer, pianist and conductor. Life and career Casella was born in Turin, the son of Maria (née Bordino) and Carlo Casella. His family included many musicians: his grandfather, a f ...

. There he acquired formation in choir studies with Elena Mangione and from choir director and influential composer, Goffredo Petrassi. From 1957 to 1972 he became an artistic director for Radio Svizzera Italiana in

Lugano Lugano ( , , ; ) is a city and municipality within the Lugano District in the canton of Ticino, Switzerland. It is the largest city in both Ticino and the Italian-speaking region of southern Switzerland. Lugano has a population () of , and an u ...

. During this period he received an award by the 8th International Competition G.B. Viotti in Vercelli, Italy for his work, ''Tema con Variazioni'', for one piano. During this period he conducted and performed piano recitals throughout Europe. In 1957–1961, he was commissioned by the Italian State to direct his work, ''Aeroporto''. The first showing of this work was in 1961 in

Bergamo, Italy Bergamo ( , ; ) is a city in the Alps, alpine Lombardy region of northern Italy, approximately northeast of Milan, and about from the alpine lakes Lake Como, Como and Lake Iseo, Iseo and 70 km (43 mi) from Lake Garda, Garda and Lake ...

in collaboration with writer and playwright, Achille Campanile. Between 1961 and 1970, he continued to give concerts throughout Europe and in parallel composed some big works one of which, ''Hiroshima'', was commissioned by the state of

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. Between 1972 and 1975, The Congress of Soviet Composers invited Giuffrè to Moscow for a concert held at the Kremlin where he met the milieu of contemporary Soviet composers:

Dmitri Shostakovitch Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich, group=n (9 August 1975) was a Soviet-era Russian composer and pianist who became internationally known after the premiere of his First Symphony in 1926 and thereafter was regarded as a major composer. Shostak ...

, Aram Khachatourian and

Dmitri Kabalevsky Dmitry Borisovich Kabalevsky ( ; – 14 February 1987) was a Soviet composer, conductor, pianist and pedagogue of Russian gentry descent. He helped set up the Union of Soviet Composers in Moscow and remained one of its leading figures during ...

. Soon after, he traveled to South Africa to study African percussion. In 1976 he was awarded a bursary by the

Swiss Confederation Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerlan ...

to write a symphonic study of the sculptural compositions of the late

Alberto Giacometti Alberto Giacometti (, , ; 10 October 1901 – 11 January 1966) was a Swiss sculptor, painter, Drafter, draftsman and Printmaking, printmaker, who was one of the most important sculptors of the 20th century. His work was particularly influenced ...

. The composition, ''Giacometti Introspekt'', was written for 52 instruments, mixed choir and percussion. In 1981, Giuffrè left Europe for Canada where he established himself in

Vancouver, British Columbia Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

. In 1984, he directed the Papal visit to

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

where he was responsible for preparations and direction of the music and artists. 13 years later, the Foundation Gaetano Giuffrè was created by the

Cantonal and University Library of Lausanne The Cantonal and University Library of Lausanne (''Bibliothèque cantonale et universitaire de Lausanne'', BCU) was founded in the 16th century and became one of the most important public libraries in Switzerland. History The University of ...

where his works can be found in manuscript (more than 150 titles).

References

External links

List of compositions
{{DEFAULTSORT:Giuffre, Gaetano Greek composers Swiss composers Swiss male composers 1918 births 2018 deaths Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia alumni Greek expatriates in Italy Greek emigrants to Switzerland Swiss expatriates in Canada Musicians from Corfu