Giuseppe Anneda (born

Cagliari Cagliari (, also , , ; sc, Casteddu ; lat, Caralis) is an Italian municipality and the capital of the island of Sardinia, an autonomous region of Italy. Cagliari's Sardinian name ''Casteddu'' means ''castle''. It has about 155,000 inhabitant ...

, 1 March 1912 – died Cagliari, 30 July 1997) was an Italian

mandolin A mandolin ( it, mandolino ; literally "small mandola") is a stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally plucked with a pick. It most commonly has four courses of doubled strings tuned in unison, thus giving a total of 8 ...

virtuoso A virtuoso (from Italian ''virtuoso'' or , "virtuous", Late Latin ''virtuosus'', Latin ''virtus'', "virtue", "excellence" or "skill") is an individual who possesses outstanding talent and technical ability in a particular art or field such as ...

who helped the mandolin gain more importance in the

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical music, as the term "classical music" also ...

world in the 20th Century. He performed with his instrument in concert halls around the world, including some where mandolin "had never entered", and taught at the Conservatory Pollini of

Padua Padua ( ; it, Padova ; vec, Pàdova) is a city and ''comune'' in Veneto, northern Italy. Padua is on the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice. It is the capital of the province of Padua. It is also the economic and communications hub of the ...

(holding "First Chair.") He also was able to gain access to manuscripts in museums, rediscovering works by

Vivaldi Antonio Lucio Vivaldi (4 March 1678 – 28 July 1741) was an Italian composer, virtuoso violinist and impresario of Baroque music. Regarded as one of the greatest Baroque composers, Vivaldi's influence during his lifetime was widespread a ...

Pergolesi Pergolesi is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Giovanni Battista Pergolesi, (1710–1736), Italian composer, violinist, and organist * Michael Angelo Pergolesi, 18th-century Italian decorative artist {{Surname Italian-langu ...

Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classical ...

and many others. Anedda started out a

child prodigy A child prodigy is defined in psychology research literature as a person under the age of ten who produces meaningful output in some domain at the level of an adult expert. The term is also applied more broadly to young people who are extraor ...

, who began to study the

violin The violin, sometimes known as a ''fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone (string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in the family in regular ...

at 5 years old, but had to switch to mandolin because of the family's inability to afford a violin. He was performing in

theater Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actor, actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The p ...

and the

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

by the time he was 10 years old. While still young, he also became part of a professional performing group, the ''Quartetto Karalis'', with Flavio Cornacchia (mandola), Giovanni Scano (guitar), and Massimo Piredda (2nd mandolin). He enlisted with the police at the Palazzo Reale di Napoli (Royal Palace of Naples), and in 1938 there had the opportunity to compete in a musical composition organized by the

Opera Nazionale Dopolavoro The National Afterwork Club (''Opera Nazionale Dopolavoro'', or OND) was the Italian Fascist leisure and recreational organization for adults. History In April 1925, Italian dictator Benito Mussolini agreed to the Fascist unions’ demands to s ...

(Italian Fascist leisure and recreational organization) winning for two straight years. He started working for the

Ente Italiano per le Audizioni Radiofoniche Ente Italiano per le Audizioni Radiofoniche (EIAR, "Italian Body for Radio Broadcasting") was the public service broadcaster in Fascist Italy and the only entity permitted to broadcast by the government. History The company was established in 1 ...

in 1941, and in 1948 was part of the first ever performance of the original concert of Vivaldi for two mandolins, strings and harpsichord, led by Maestro Nino Sanzogno. That performance was repeated at the Accademia di Santa Cecilia in 1950. GiuseppeAnedda

That performance led to a greater and longer term opportunity, when Maestro

Renato Fasano Renato Fasano (Naples, August 21, 1902 – Rome, August 3, 1979) was an Italian conductor and musicologist particularly associated with 18th-century Italian works. Having studied music in his native Naples, Fasano established in 1941 the chamber ...

wanted to include it in the repertoire of the Collegium Musicum Italicum. It was recorded in London for

His Master's Voice His Master's Voice (HMV) was the name of a major British record label created in 1901 by The Gramophone Co. Ltd. The phrase was coined in the late 1890s from the title of a painting by English artist Francis Barraud, which depicted a Jack Russ ...

and won the award organized by the Academy Vivaldiana Brussels for the interpretation of the soloist. Anedda went on to direct the Collegium Italicum, one of the best chamber orchestras in the world, for more than over 16 years (1952-1968). GiuseppeAnedda3

Another performance in 1968 sealed his place as "the world's greatest mandolinist", when he performed in Igor Stravinsky's new ballet, Agon. The audience reacted strongly to the performance, crying "Bravo Mandolino!" and Stravinsky himself shook hands with Anedda. Anedda gave "countless concerts in all parts of the world", sometimes solo, or performing with orchestras or with pianist Franco Barbalonga. Beginning in 1970, he taught at the Manhattan School of Music. He gave concerts with

Claudio Scimone Claudio Scimone (23 December 1934 – 6 September 2018) was an Italian conductor. He was born in Padua, Italy and studied conducting with Dmitri Mitropoulos and Franco Ferrara. He established an international reputation as a conductor, as well a ...

in Switzerland, and the friendship between the two helped establish the "First Chair" for teaching the mandolin at the Conservatory Pollini of Padua, where Anedda remained until retiring in 1980. His service was honored with a gold medal from the Presidency of the Italian Republic. He was also invited to the inauguration of the

Festival of Two Worlds The ''Festival dei Due Mondi'' (Festival of the Two Worlds) is an annual summer music and opera festival held each June to early July in Spoleto, Italy, since its founding by composer Gian Carlo Menotti in 1958. It features a vast array of conce ...

in Charleston in

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

, one of two Italians there.

References

External links

Quintetta a Plettro Giuseppe Anedda
{{DEFAULTSORT:Anedda, Giuseppe 1912 births 1997 deaths 20th-century Italian musicians Italian music educators Italian classical mandolinists Italian classical violinists Male classical violinists 20th-century classical violinists 20th-century Italian male musicians