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Nobile Teatro di San Giacomo di Corfù,
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...
for The Noble Theatre of Saint James of Corfu, or simply Teatro di San Giacomo, was a theatre in
Corfu Corfu (, ) or Kerkyra ( el, Κέρκυρα, Kérkyra, , ; ; la, Corcyra.) is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea, of the Ionian Islands, and, including its small satellite islands, forms the margin of the northwestern frontier of Greece. The isl ...
,
Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders wi ...
which became the centre of Greek
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 libr ...
between 1733 and 1893.Kardamis, Kostas
Birth of Greek Opera
"San Giacomo and Greek ottocento" XI Convegno Annuale di Società Italiana di Musicologia
Lecce Lecce ( ); el, label= Griko, Luppìu, script=Latn; la, Lupiae; grc, Λουπίαι, translit=Loupíai), group=pron is a historic city of 95,766 inhabitants (2015) in southern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Lecce, the provi ...
, 22–24 October 2004. Archive from 16 October 2015 (accessed 4 December 2017). Quotes: "Originally it functioned as the loggia of the island’s Venetian nobility, but in 1720 it was converted into a theatre, which, despite being one more theatre in the provinces of Serenissima, became the first modern theatre on Greek soil." - "These activities are of particular importance for the music history of modern Greece, since in an era when there was not such a thing as Greek State in Greek Mainland (let alone organized musical activities)." - "San Giacomo gradually acted as a pole that could hold in Corfu adequate and often well-qualified players and teachers from Italy. This resulted to the increasing interest towards music, a fact that had both cultural and social roots, and to the gradual emergence of a series of indigenous players, becoming this way the first professional musicians of modern Greece." - "Our knowledge for the activities of San Giacomo was until recently very limited, mainly due to the loss of its valuable archive during a German bombing in 1943." - "Spiridon Xindas is widely known as the composer of the opera O ypopsifios (1867), the first opera on Greek libretto." - "In 1867 the opera O Ypopsifios he Parliamentary Candidatewas performed in San Giacomo by local amateurs. This was the first opera to use a full-scale libretto in Greek and which shows the creative assimilation of Italian and Greek musical perspectives in the Ionians."
Despite its provincial origins it attracted Italian musicians and composers, many of whom became permanent residents of Corfu and contributed to the local music scene. The theatre acted as a
catalyst Catalysis () is the process of increasing the rate of a chemical reaction by adding a substance known as a catalyst (). Catalysts are not consumed in the reaction and remain unchanged after it. If the reaction is rapid and the catalyst recyc ...
in this cultural interaction and gave impetus to the development of the Ionian School of Music. Corfiot composer Nikolaos Halikiopoulos Mantzaros was a beneficiary of the
synergy Synergy is an interaction or cooperation giving rise to a whole that is greater than the simple sum of its parts. The term ''synergy'' comes from the Attic Greek word συνεργία ' from ', , meaning "working together". History In Christian ...
between the Italian and Corfiot musical traditions. The Theatre and its historical archives were destroyed during a German
Luftwaffe The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German '' Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the '' Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabt ...
bombing raid in 1943.


History

Nobile Teatro di San Giacomo was named after a
Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the ''cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominations ...
in Corfu. Established in 1693, during the
Republic of Venice The Republic of Venice ( vec, Repùblega de Venèsia) or Venetian Republic ( vec, Repùblega Vèneta, links=no), traditionally known as La Serenissima ( en, Most Serene Republic of Venice, italics=yes; vec, Serenìsima Repùblega de Venèsia ...
period, as a gathering place of the Venetian nobility of Corfu it was converted into a theatre in 1720 and became the first modern theatre to be established in Greece. Initially the theatre staged theatrical plays but in 1733 an opera was performed there for the first time. The opera was A. Aurelli’s ''Gerone, tiranno di Siracusa''. The operas were continuously staged especially between 1771 and 1892 when the theatre was converted to a
City Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...
. The musical tradition established by the theatre is especially important to the history of modern Greek music since it helped establish a Greek musical presence at a time when the Greek State did not even exist. The theatre staged the type of comic opera known as
opera buffa ''Opera buffa'' (; "comic opera", plural: ''opere buffe'') is a genre of opera. It was first used as an informal description of Italian comic operas variously classified by their authors as ''commedia in musica'', ''commedia per musica'', ''dram ...
which was less elaborate and therefore more economical than the full-fledged
opera seria ''Opera seria'' (; plural: ''opere serie''; usually called '' dramma per musica'' or '' melodramma serio'') is an Italian musical term which refers to the noble and "serious" style of Italian opera that predominated in Europe from the 1710s to ...
. San Giacomo's opera crews were mainly from southern
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
. The opera house functioned during times of upheaval unabated as, for example, during the arrival of the French in 1797. In 1799, during the
Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...
- Ottoman
siege A siege is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition, or a well-prepared assault. This derives from la, sedere, lit=to sit. Siege warfare is a form of constant, low-intensity conflict characteriz ...
, the theatre continued its performances even as the foreign opera troupe was unable to leave the island due to the blockade. The performance at such a challenging time was used as a means for
propaganda Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded ...
and to raise the morale of the population. The theatre attracted many Italian professional musicians who came to Corfu as teachers as well as composers and performers. This had the effect of generating an appreciation for music among the locals and this gradually led to the appearance of the first Corfiot music professionals who, in turn, became the first professional musicians of modern Greece. Corfiot
Spyridon Xyndas Spyridon Xyndas or Spiridione Xinda ( el, Σπυρίδων Ξύνδας; June 8, 1812 – November 25, 1896) was a Greek composer and guitarist, whose last name has also been transliterated as "Xinta", "Xinda", "Xindas" and "Xyntas". Biography X ...
, for example, wrote the Greek opera ''
O ypopsifios O, or o, is the fifteenth letter and the fourth vowel letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''o'' (pronounced ), plu ...
'' (''The Parliamentary Candidate'') which became the first opera composed on an exclusively Greek
libretto A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major li ...
and was performed at San Giacomo in 1867.Ionian Islands Culture
- Quote: "In 1867 in San Giacomo theatre in Corfu premiers the first opera of Xyndas with a social critique topic entitled “Parliament Candidate” which was the first melodrama ever written by a Greek composer on a totally Greek libretto (of Ioannis Rinopoulos)."
The oral tradition held that operatic performers who found success at the theatre were distinguished with the accolade ''applaudito in Corfú'' ("applauded in Corfu") as a tribute to the discriminating musical taste of the island audience.
/ref> The theatre was replaced by the
Municipal Theatre of Corfu The Municipal Theatre of Corfu ( el, Δημοτικό Θέατρο Κέρκυρας) was the main theatre and opera house in Corfu, Greece, from 1902 to 1943.Municipality of Corfu Official Website. (2008) History of the municipal theatre via the I ...
in 1902.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nobile Teatro di San Giacomo di Corfu Theatres in Greece Opera houses in Greece History of Corfu (city) Baroque architecture in Greece Theatres completed in 1720 Music venues completed in 1720 1720 establishments in the Republic of Venice 18th-century establishments in Greece Venetian rule in the Ionian Islands Architecture of Corfu Theatres in Corfu