Mar. 6 – “I was once asked to translate the script on Raffaello’s grace. I was too embarrassed by my ignorance to do it. But this is in a sense Italy’s contemporary spirit: we lull ourselves in our past but do very little to preserve and retrieve it.”. Riccardo Muti received yesterday in Rome the Gold Medal for Italian Culture, and during his thank you he spoke mainly of his own ignorance and Italy’s relationship with the past. The Italian-American Institute of Rome was the backdrop for the event, during which the Italy-Argentina Society awarded the orchestra conductor a medal for his contributions to the spread of Italian culture in Argentina. The award ceremony, now in its 15th edition, has already assigned medals to Umberto Eco, Uto Ughi and Ernesto Sabato. This year, the Society led by Victor Uckmar and Giorgio De Lorenzi, chose Maestro Muti for his “personal and professional activities in Argentina, which improved relations between two peoples, and his frequent travels to Argentina, at the Teatro Colón.” The vicepresident adds:”we’re trying to bring value to those figures who work in contemporary culture. The great masters of the past, such as Michelangelo and Raffello, are part of the world’s heritage. But figures like Muti, Ughi, Eco and many others bring to life the Italian origins of the Argentine people.” The Maestro was visibly touched by the award, but didn’t lose the chance to stress the importance of political figures in preserving and promoting Italian culture: “our ignorance as a people is not only our fault. We live in a country that established the Teatro dell’Opera and invented many musical styles… Yet, very little is done to preserve this niche specialization. A lot of words but very little action.”
