Friends of Franchetti

When dealing intensively with Alberto Franchetti, I started to see that he's not only an artist of whom you can expect the occasional nice musical excavation. I realized, surprised and alarmed, that Franchetti is indeed a really great composer who has been completely forgotten - not least due to a performance prohibition by fascist regime. As far as I know there's no similar case in cultural history: An artist who had three well-earned worldwide successes is now erased almost completely from the human memory. It should be natural - especially in Germany - to support creating late legitimacy for the Jewish composer. Instead the analysis with him is still avoided or is highly ill-fated, as seen with the revival of GERMANIA at Berlin. Freunde Franchettis (Friends of Franchetti) try to achieve that this wonderful music is at least available on CD, in a complete recording. By the way Franchetti was a slightly eccentric Baron, not conservative but more leftist. He was no nationalist, he changed his nationality twice. (To divorce from his wife Margherita Levi he chose German citizenship for some time.) The opera GERMANIA was declared as * German chauvinism/ hyper-Germanness* and nationalistic art by some press members; it isn't indeed, although it deals with national feelings and fanatism, but that's something different. Considering talent Franchetti can be set even with Puccini. He might have lacked the necessary will and discipline to reach the top of Olympus, but he was very superior to colleagues like Mascagni, Cilea or Leoncavallo. Franchetti, who is absurdely sometimes run down to the "Italian Meyerbeer", was the only serious rival of Giacomo Puccini for a long time (until about 1903). And both their lifes are connected in many sometimes weird cases. This is the theme of Helmut Krausser's book ZWEI UNGLEICHE RIVALEN (Two odd rivals), which was edited at Edition Elke Heidenreich, Munich.

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Read a chapter in German here.

We would be very pleased if you'd like to help the Friends of Franchetti. If he/she wishes any donator can receive a CD with a temporary best-of Franchetti. Any donator will be mentioned amongst the Friends of Franchetti, except they wish to stay anonymous.

The Friends of Franchetti

FF tries to reach the following objectives:

Franchetti Society

Research for the score of GLAUCO at the opera house of Naples. There are good chances that this opera of which for now only a piano score exists could be found in the archive. It needs sponsoring a two weeks stay at Naples, which might cost about 1500 Euro. This objective makes only sense if the opera house of Naples would participate actively and would give free access to the investigator.

Write us:

freundefranchettis@web.de

Music sample: Cristoforo Colombo

Music sample: Germania - Studenti udite

The operas Notte di Leggenda and Signor di Pourceaugnac (also existing only as piano scores) should be re-instrumentalized by cunning hands. Costs: each about 20,000 Euro.

Music sample: Glauco

The operas Asrael and Fior d'Alpe, maybe also the posthumous opera Don Buonaparte should be performed in concert and released on CD. This would be done in cooperation with an opera house and a record company. Costs: each about 50,000 Euro.

The publishing house Ricordi should prove cooperation, a proceeding that will need negotiations. Qualified articles in European newspapers should show/explain Franchettis importance. Helmut Krausser's book "Zwei ungleiche Rivalen" about Puccini and Franchetti should be translated and published in as much languages as possible, if necessary without royalties.

Berlin 22.3.2011 ---