Culture

All culturally literate people know who George Frideric Handel was, yet the man who gave him his biggest career boost as well as being one of the great composers of his age and more, is largely unknown.  It was, in …

Un portico lungo 30 metri è riemerso dalla terra negli scavi di Ossaia, frazione di Cortona. Questo ed altri elementi sono ritornati alla luce durante le ultime opere di scavo fatte dagli universitari di Alberta, Canada, guidati da Elena Fracchia …

Mazzini would not have been surprised at revelations that the N.S.A. (National Security Agency) had been monitoring our telephone, email and Internet use, had he been able to read the front pages of our newspapers lately.   The A.C.L.U. has …

Dear Readers, August-Agosto has many dates with an Italian connection:   Caruso, the world famous tenor was born in Naples in 1873 and died there at age 48 on August 2, 1921. Enrico Caruso had just turned twenty-two when he …

Italy has long been one of the world’s most popular travel destinations, and many a person has diligently saved to make the trip, but few can claim to have given up as much as Queen Christina, who renounced the kingdom …

Bypassing  the strong visual power of the romantic canals of Venice, the breath-taking views inside and outside Tuscany, a portrait of Rome by night and a snapshot of the emerald Sardinian sea, it is not an easy goal.   From …

Dear Readers, Antonio Lucio Vivaldi (1678-1741) was a violinist extraordinaire and one of the most prolific well-known Italian composers who composed over 500 concertos, 12 operas, numerous oratorios, lyrics and cantatas and I have something in common, i.e., both our …

There was a time, in Ancient Rome, when it was customary to eat with only three fingers, while leaving the ring finger and little finger uninvolved.  Only a person lacking sophistication and grace used all five fingers. With the morphing …

We all have our vacations. But where on this earth will you find one nation who closes down, packs up, and goes off to rejuvenate all at one time? In the month of August, Italy does just that and of …

Molte città e regioni italiane tendono a celebrare gli immigrati ma ad ignorare i loro emigrati. Montesilvano in Abruzzo, si identifica invece con un suo famoso emigrato: Dean Martin, al secolo Dino Crocetti, a cui dedica una festa nel mese …