Emilia Romagna Castles

From the scholarship that allowed the young Giuseppe Verdi to further his studies in Milan to the testamentary documents that sealed his final wishes, the exhibition tells, through a selection of original autographs and documents belonging to Fondazione Cariparma, almost the entire human, artistic and civic story of the Maestro.

Set up in the monumental rooms of the Biblioteca di Busseto, the exhibition traces seventy years of history, from 1831 to 1901. The itinerary opens with the scholarship application submitted in 1831 to the Monte di Pietà of Busseto and continues with the 1837 letter to Duchess Marie Louise of Austria, in which Verdi asks to perform at the court of Parma. Among the most significant documents is the dedication of Macbeth (1847) to his father-in-law Antonio Barezzi, described as “father, benefactor and friend”.

Alongside the testimonies of his career are those of his role as an educator, with the study certificates of his only pupil Emanuele Muzio and a letter of recommendation from 1851. Considerable space is also given to his civic commitment, documented by the 1859 appeal in support of the fallen of the Second War of Independence and by the decision, in 1876, to establish an annual pension for a deserving student.

The itinerary concludes with his final testamentary wishes, the bequest to the Monte di Pietà of Busseto, and two precious musical autographs: a sketch for Simon Boccanegra (1881) and the sketch for the final Concertato of Act III of Otello, among the last pages destined for the stage.

Opening: Sunday 11 October 2026, 10:00 a.m.
The exhibition is open until 31 January 2027 every Saturday afternoon at 4:30 p.m. and every second Sunday of the month on the occasion of “Meravigliosa biblioteca”. Admission is free.

Info

BIBLIOTECA DI BUSSETO Via Roma, 38 – 43011 Busseto (PR)

biblioteca.busseto@fondazionecrp.it
Tel. 0524-92224