Lojze Bratuž, Italianized name ''Luigi Bertossi'', (February 17, 1902 – February 16, 1937) was a Slovene

choirmaster A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which sp ...

and

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 Defi ...

from

Gorizia Gorizia (; sl, Gorica , colloquially 'old Gorizia' to distinguish it from Nova Gorica; fur, label= Standard Friulian, Gurize, fur, label= Southeastern Friulian, Guriza; vec, label= Bisiacco, Gorisia; german: Görz ; obsolete English ''Gorit ...

who was killed by Italian Fascist squads. He is regarded as a martyr of the

anti-Fascist Anti-fascism is a political movement in opposition to fascist ideologies, groups and individuals. Beginning in European countries in the 1920s, it was at its most significant shortly before and during World War II, where the Axis powers were ...

struggle of the Slovene population in the Slovene Littoral region during Italian rule.

Biography

Bratuž was born in a Slovene-speaking family in the town of

, then the center of the

Austro-Hungarian Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

County of Gorizia and Gradisca. He was educated in the town's Slovene schools and chose a career in music. After the Slovene Littoral and the adjacent regions of Inner Carniola were annexed to the

Kingdom of Italy The Kingdom of Italy ( it, Regno d'Italia) was a state that existed from 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Kingdom of Sardinia, Sardinia was proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, proclaimed King of Italy, until 1946, when civil discontent led to ...

under the

Treaty of Rapallo Following World War I there were two Treaties of Rapallo, both named after Rapallo, a resort on the Ligurian coast of Italy: * Treaty of Rapallo, 1920, an agreement between Italy and the Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (the later Yugoslav ...

in 1920, Bratuž remained loyal to his Slovene origins and resisted the forced

Italianization Italianization ( it, italianizzazione; hr, talijanizacija; french: italianisation; sl, poitaljančevanje; german: Italianisierung; el, Ιταλοποίηση) is the spread of Italian culture, language and identity by way of integration or a ...

of the region, which was populated by a Slovene majority. Initially, he taught singing and was a choirmaster in the village of Šmartno in the Gorizia Hills north of Gorizia, and later in a small

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy, ...

in Gorizia. In 1929, he was imprisoned for a short time by the

Fascist Fascism is a far-right, Authoritarianism, authoritarian, ultranationalism, ultra-nationalist political Political ideology, ideology and Political movement, movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and pol ...

authorities due to his Slovene

patriotism Patriotism is the feeling of love, devotion, and sense of attachment to one's country. This attachment can be a combination of many different feelings, language relating to one's own homeland, including ethnic, cultural, political or histor ...

. In 1930, he was appointed coordinator of church

choir A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which ...

s in the

region by the

archbishop of Gorizia The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Gorizia ( la, Archidioecesis Goritiensis) is an archdiocese of the Latin Church of the Catholic Church in Italy. The archiepiscopal see of Gorizia ( Friulian: ''Gurizza/Gurizze''; german: Görz; sl, Gorica) was ...

, Frančišek Borgia Sedej. He led the only choirs in Slovene allowed by authorities in the

region (in the Gorizia Hills, Vipava Valley,

Soča Valley The Soča ( in Slovene) or Isonzo ( in Italian; other names fur, Lusinç, german: Sontig, la, Aesontius or ') is a long river that flows through western Slovenia () and northeastern Italy (). An Alpine river in character, its source lies in ...

, and upper Karst Plateau). On December 27, 1936, a group of

s kidnapped Bratuž in Piedimonte del Calvario (now a suburb of

) immediately after the

Mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different elementar ...

, where he had been conducting a choir. He was taken to a nearby building, where he was brutally beaten and forced to drink castor oil mixed with

gasoline Gasoline (; ) or petrol (; ) (see ) is a transparent, petroleum-derived flammable liquid that is used primarily as a fuel in most spark-ignited internal combustion engines (also known as petrol engines). It consists mostly of organic co ...

and

motor oil Motor oil, engine oil, or engine lubricant is any one of various substances used for the lubrication of internal combustion engines. They typically consist of base oils enhanced with various additives, particularly antiwear additives, deterg ...

. He was unable to recover from this

poison Poison is a chemical substance that has a detrimental effect to life. The term is used in a wide range of scientific fields and industries, where it is often specifically defined. It may also be applied colloquially or figuratively, with a broa ...

ing, and he died a month and a half later in the Gorizia central

hospital A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment with specialized health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically has an emerge ...

. A few days before his death, his supporters gathered beneath the hospital window, sang a Slovene song, and then fled before the authorities could arrest them. Thus Lojze Bratuž soon became a symbol of Fascist persecution of Slovenes in the Julian March. During his life, Bratuž set several poems to music and arranged them for choirs. Today a Slovene mixed choir from Gorizia and a Slovene cultural center in Gorizia bear his name. He was married to the poet Ljubka Šorli. Their daughter, Lojzka Bratuž, is an author and activist in the organizations of the Slovene minority in Italy.

References

External links

An article at RTVSLO (in Slovenian)

Mixed Choir Lojze Bratuž (in Slovene)

Lojze Bratuž Cultural Centre in Gorizia (in Slovene and Italian)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bratuz, Lojze 1902 births 1937 deaths 20th-century composers Italian Slovenes Italian anti-fascists Italian torture victims Kidnapped Italian people People murdered in Italy People from Gorizia Slovenian torture victims Slovenian composers Male composers Slovenian Roman Catholics Slovenian anti-fascists Slovenian male musicians Italian composers

Biography

See also

References

External links