19 October

NEW - Adolfo Fumagalli - pianist and composer 

‘Virtuoso of the left hand’ had brief but influential career

The pianist and composer Adolfo Fumagalli, who is chiefly remembered for his extraordinary ability to play complicated pieces with only his left hand, was born on this day in 1828 in Inzago, a small town about 28km (17 miles) east of Milan.  Born into a family rich in musical talent, Fumagalli became known at a young age for his technical prowess and expressive style, a dazzling performer playing in the conventional two-handed fashion.  He studied piano at the Milan Conservatory from the age of nine to 19. It is noted that, as a 12 or 13-year-old, his performance playing variations on a march from Gioachino Rossini 's opera L'assedio di Corinto in the Conservatory hall created excitement.  Fumagalli made his public debut in Milan in 1848, at the age of 20. His talent was greeted with enthusiastic acclaim and he was soon captivating audiences across Europe. Read more… 

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Carlo Urbani – microbiologist

Infectious disease expert who identified SARS

The doctor and microbiologist Carlo Urbani, whose decisive action after discovering the deadly SARS virus saved millions of lives, was born on this day in 1956 in Castelplanio, near Ancona.  Dr Urbani himself died after contracting the condition, which had been given the name severe acute respiratory syndrome.  He identified it in an American businessman who had been taken ill in Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam, with suspected influenza.  Recognising quickly that what he was dealing with was not a straightforward case of ‘flu, Urbani, who was working in Vietnam as an infectious diseases specialist for the World Health Organisation, immediately alerted WHO headquarters in Geneva.  He convinced them that what he had discovered posed a grave threat to life and thus sparked the most effective response to a major epidemic in the history of medicine. Read more…

Fiorenzo Magni - cycling champion

Rider from Tuscany won Giro d'Italia three times

Italy lost one of its finest professional riders and its last link with the so-called golden age of Italian cycle racing when Fiorenzo Magni died on this day in 2012.  Tuscan-born Magni was a multiple champion, winning the Giro d'Italia three times, as well as three Italian Road Race Championships.  He had seven stage wins in the Tour de France, in which he wore the yellow jersey as race leader for a total of nine days.  His other major victories were in the demanding Tour of Flanders, in which he became only the second non-Belgian winner in 1949 and went on to win three times in a row, a feat yet to be matched.  Magni might have been even more successful had his career not coincided with those of two greats of Italian cycling, the five-times Giro champion Fausto Coppi, who was twice winner of the Tour de France, and Gino Bartali, who won three Giros and one Tour de France.  Read more…

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Umberto Boccioni - painter

Artist who died tragically young was key figure in Futurism

The painter Umberto Boccioni, who became arguably the leading artist of Italian Futurism before the First World War, was born on this day in 1882 in Reggio Calabria.  Futurism was an avant-garde artistic, social and political movement that was launched by the poet Filippo Tommaso Marinetti in 1909.  Its ethos was to embrace modernity and free Italy from what was perceived as a stifling obsession with the past. The Futurists admired the speed and technological advancement of cars and aeroplanes and the new industrial cities, all of which they saw as demonstrating the triumph of humanity over nature through invention. Their work attempted to capture the dynamism of life in a modern city, creating images that convey a sense of the power and energy of industrial machinery and the passion and violence of social change.  Read more…

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Book of the Day: A Brief History of Piano Music: Essential Music History for Pianists: Baroque Through Present Day, by Jennifer Boster

Explore the rich history of piano literature from the Baroque era to the present day. Learn briefly about historical factors in each era that affected music's evolution, the characteristics of the music of each period, and the composers throughout history who made important contributions to piano literature. Meet 63 incredible composers and listen to their piano works with the accompanying playlist, accessible via a QR code. A Brief History of Piano Music is filled with beautiful historical paintings that add insight into the style of art and music during each period. It makes a beautiful gift to give to piano students, piano teachers and music lovers.

Jennifer Boster has been playing the piano since she was a young girl and has been giving piano lessons for more than 20 years. She has a Bachelor of Music degree in Piano Performance. 

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