Romano Bruno Mussolini (26 September 1927 – 3 February 2006) was an Italian

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

pianist, painter, and film producer. He was the fourth child and youngest son of

Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (; 29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who founded and led the National Fascist Party. He was Prime Minister of Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 until his deposition in 194 ...

Early life and education

Romano Mussolini was native of Villa Carpena,

Forlì Forlì ( , ; rgn, Furlè ; la, Forum Livii) is a ''comune'' (municipality) and city in Emilia-Romagna, Northern Italy, and is the capital of the province of Forlì-Cesena. It is the central city of Romagna. The city is situated along the Via E ...

(

Emilia-Romagna egl, Emigliàn (man) egl, Emiglièna (woman) rgn, Rumagnòl (man) rgn, Rumagnòla (woman) it, Emiliano (man) it, Emiliana (woman) or it, Romagnolo (man) it, Romagnola (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title ...

), Romano Mussolini studied music as a child, playing classical pieces with his father on the violin. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, he started playing jazz under the assumed name "Romano Full".

Musical career

His playing style has been described as "like a slightly melancholic

Oscar Peterson Oscar Emmanuel Peterson (August 15, 1925 – December 23, 2007) was a Canadian virtuoso jazz pianist and composer. Considered one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time, Peterson released more than 200 recordings, won seven Grammy Awards, ...

. Occasionally inspired, he was always efficient; he made the refrains run on time."

Personal life

In 1962, Mussolini married

Maria Scicolone Marianna Pia Villani Scicolone (born 11 May 1938) is an Italian television personality, columnist and singer. Scicolone was born in Rome. Her sister is actress Sophia Loren. She is also the first wife of Romano Mussolini and mother of Alessandr ...

, the younger sister of actress

Sophia Loren Sofia Costanza Brigida Villani Scicolone (; born 20 September 1934), known professionally as Sophia Loren ( , ), is an Italian actress. She was named by the American Film Institute as one of the greatest female stars of Classical Hollywood ci ...

. They had two daughters, Elisabetta and her elder sister

Alessandra Mussolini Alessandra is a female given name of Italian origin, meaning ''defender of men''. It is the Italian form of the female given name Alexandra and the female form of the male given name Alessandro. Alessandra may refer to: * Alessandra Ambrosio (bo ...

, who was a member of the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...

, and led an Italian far-right party often described as

neofascist Neo-fascism is a post-World War II far-right ideology that includes significant elements of fascism. Neo-fascism usually includes ultranationalism, racial supremacy, populism, authoritarianism, nativism, xenophobia, and anti-immigration se ...

, ''

Alternativa Sociale Social Alternative ( it, Alternativa Sociale) was a Political coalition, coalition of Far-right politics, far-right List of political parties in Italy, political parties in Italy. History The coalition grew from Social Action, which was founde ...

''. Romano Mussolini composed the party's official anthem, "The Pride of Being Italian". With his second wife, the actress Carla Maria Puccini, he had a third daughter, Rachele, named after his mother

Rachele Mussolini Rachele Guidi (11 April 1890 – 30 October 1979), also known (particularly in Italy) as Donna Rachele (Italian for "Lady Rachael") and incorrectly as Rachele Mussolini in the English-speaking world, was the second wife of Italian dictator and ...

. The younger Rachele has served as a member of the city council of Rome. Mussolini was very reserved about his family history. It was only in 2004 that he published a book, entitled ''

Il Duce ( , ) is an Italian title, derived from the Latin word 'leader', and a cognate of ''duke''. National Fascist Party leader Benito Mussolini was identified by Fascists as ('The Leader') of the movement since the birth of the in 1919. In 1925 ...

, mio padre'' (''The Leader, my father''), followed by a similar book in 2005, collecting personal memories and accounts of private confidences and discussions with his father.

Death

Romano Mussolini died in 2006, aged 78, in a hospital in Rome from heart problems.

Selected discography

* ''Mirage'' (1974) * ''Soft & Swing'' (1996) * ''The Wonderful World of Louis'' (2001) * ''Timeless Blues'' (2002) * ''Music Blues'' (2002) * ''Romano Piano & Forte'' (2002) * ''Jazz Album'' (2003) * ''Napule 'nu quarto 'e luna'' (2003) * ''Alibi perfetto'' (2004) soundtrack

References

Books

External links

Mussolini's jazz pianist son dies
from

BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broadca ...

Singer Helen Merrill recalls Romano Mussolini
*

from

La Repubblica ''la Repubblica'' (; the Republic) is an Italian daily general-interest newspaper. It was founded in 1976 in Rome by Gruppo Editoriale L'Espresso (now known as GEDI Gruppo Editoriale) and led by Eugenio Scalfari, Carlo Caracciolo and Arnoldo ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mussolini, Romano 1927 births 2006 deaths People from Forlì 20th-century Italian painters Italian male painters 21st-century Italian painters Children of national leaders Italian jazz pianists Italian male pianists

Romano Romano may refer to: Food * Pecorino Romano, a hard, salty Italian cheese * Romano cheese, an American English and Canadian English term for a class of cheeses Places Italy Municipalities in the Metropolitan City of Rome, Latium * Arcinazzo Ro ...

20th-century pianists 20th-century Italian male musicians 20th-century Italian male artists 21st-century Italian male artists Male jazz musicians