Italian Music During Fascism
- thecantabilecollective
- Mar 15, 2021
- 1 min read
By: Evelyn Bleu
During the 1930s, censorship imposed by the government began to interfere with the music of the age. An example is that, in 1934, Mussolini banned an opera called La favola del figlio cambiato by G.F. Malipiero after only one performance. In addition, music that was viewed as not sufficiently Italian or politically radical was harshly criticized. Furthermore, the media, such as the Enciclopedia Moderna Italiana, did not treat modernists like Alfredo Casella and Ferruccio Busoni equally, and showed favoritism to composers with a more traditional style. Before the Italian Fascist regime became completely opposed to foreign influences in the late 1930s, American musicians were very popular. For instance, the great jazz musician Louis Armstrong toured Italy in 1935 and received much praise. However, during the Fascist period, composers turned to neo-classical music to combine artistic independence with the limits of Italian nationalism. Overall, during the fascist control of Italy, musicians’ creative freedom was stifled and there was limited influence from Western nations.
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