Before we entered the fabulous permanent collection of the museum, there was a small photographic exhibit in a modern room off to the side on the main floor. The exhibit featured 60 photographs by Luigi Ottani and Andrea Semplici of the European Spirit of Youth Orchestra (ESYO). ESYO was conceived in 1994 by the Italian Slovene violinist and conductor Igor Coretti Kuret. It is composed of young musicians (between 13-19 years old) from a number of European countries. It is supported by the School for Young European Musicians which was founded in Trieste in 1991, following the outbreak of the Balkan wars. Its goal is to promote dialogue among different European countries. It has supported the ESYO project which brings young people together in a multicultural environment. Over 2000 young musicians have participated in the Orchestra.
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Symphony, the sound of Europe: 60 photographs
The photos were not individually labelled, but were taken by the two photographers on their journeys with the Orchestra. I'm just including a few of the photographs.
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We then proceeded to tour the two floors of the Carlo Schmidl Theatre Museum. The Museum was founded by Carlo Schmidl (1859-1943) and started with the donation of his historical collection. Its aim is to document the stage and musical life of Trieste from the 18th century to the present day. Posters, fliers, photos, musical instruments, costumes and other archives have built up a "theatre of memory". From 1924-2006, the Museum was housed in two other locations.
In 2006, the Museum moved to its present location in the Palazzo Gopcevich, built in 1850 by the architect Giovanni Berlam as the residence of the Serbian shipowner Spiridione Gopcevich. The façade has yellow and red motifs inspired by the Palazzo Ducale in Venice and architectural decorations that recall the history of the Serbian people. The Palazzo was later bought and transformed into a museum by the Municipality of Trieste.
In the landing going up to the first floor, there were a few "teasers" of items in the museum.
There was a section on Giuseppe Kaschmann (1850-1925) a baritone who in 1876, had his debut at the Teatro Regio in Turin. He dominated the scene for at least a quarter of a century. He performed in the opening season of the New York Metropolitan Opera in 1883-84. There were also a number of his family's portraits and lots of memorabilia on display.
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| Stage Costume |
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Costume for Rodolfo Moraro (1908-1994)- he returned many times to the stage of the
Teatro Verdi in Trieste. He donated this costume to the Museum in 1991. |
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| Beautiful displays- the ceilings and floors were amazing |
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| Franco Armani, Portrait of Giuseppe Verdi, 1901 |
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There were three rooms with collections of musical instruments from Europe, the Mediterranean basin, and non-European countries. |
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| One corner of a room of instruments |
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| Room with mandolins |
There was a puppet and marionettes room.
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| Beautiful displays of costumes and instruments |
It turned out to be a fascinating exhibit of the history of theatre, actors and singers in Trieste for the past two centuries along with an incredible collection of musical instruments. The collection of paintings was also outstanding and there were many mementos and costumes from theatres in and around Trieste. There is also a Library, Archive and Resource Centre with more than 100,000 books mainly about music, theatre and cinema.
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| The Canal again |
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| Illy building next to Museum |
We walked back to Piazza Unità which was quiet-- just the two giant flags of Italy and Trieste on display for Republic Day.
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| All quiet on the Piazza |
We decided to have lunch at Palato Salsamenteria, where we ate the other day. We had a bowl of
jota, (a local soup that includes beans, potatoes and pork), the delicious ham and horseradish tartines and whipped cod tartines. I had a very good Aperol Spritz (not watered down like some in North America for only 4.50 euros).
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| Lunch-- the hams in Trieste are exceptional |
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| Yum! |
We wandered some more and came across the statue of Italo Svevo, the pseudonym of Aron Hector Schmitz (1861-1928), hat and book in hand, making his way to the Civic Library, as he did during his life, like Saba, Joyce and other writers.
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| Statue of writer Italo Svevo, created by Triestine Nino Spagnoli in 2004 |
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| There was also a memorial to a victim of femmicide from 2021. |
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| The Attilio Hortis Civic Library was at this location from 1820 onward (across from the statue of Svevo) |
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| Plaques on the wall of the Civic Library |
We went to check out the Arco di Riccardo (Richard's Arch), the Roman Gate from the 1st century BC which leads to the hill of San Giusto. At the beginning of the 20th century, it was the main thoroughfare of a densely-populated area of taverns and meeting places loved by James Joyce.
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| Ricardo's Arch |
We decided to head back to Piazza Unità to see what was going on. First, we went into Caffè deli Specchi, the historic café on the square and had a coffee at the bar. Alonso had a capo (macchiato) and I had a nero (espresso) (Trieste coffee terms). They both came with a shot of chocolate - just 1 euro each at the bar.
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| Alonso with his "capo" |
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| Lots of cakes and chocolates for sale-- very fancy inside of the caffè. |
We hung around the square watching folks get ready for an event later in the day.
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| Large flags |
A number of vehicles were arriving in the square. We had a laugh watching them being parked in formation. Coast guard, fire fighters, army and police cars.
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| Nice hat |
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| Giving instructions for parking |
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| Firetrucks arriving |
As the event was not yet happening, we walked back down the pedestrian street where we had lunch and stopped for a gelato/sorbetto at a 100% naturale Gelateria.
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| Inside of the Gelateria |
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Lots of great flavours--I had the Vegan Pistachio-- first time I had seen that flavour in non-dairy. Alonso had a coffee gelato. Very good.
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We decided to visit the Civico Museo Della Civiltà Istriana Fiumana Dalmata nearby. There was an exhibit called: Illustrators in Venezia Guilia. Venezia Guilia is a region that no longer exists after the Istria peninsula became part of the former Yugoslavia after WWII. Only a minimal part remained in Italy. Today most of Istria is in Croatia with a small piece in Slovenia and a smaller piece in Italy.
Poster for the temporary exhibit
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| Vito Timmel, 1922 |
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| Gustavo Petronio, Trieste, 1914 |
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| Pier Antonio Sencig (1875-1952), Caffè tostato "Cartesio", Fiume, ca. 1920 |
Marcello Claris, Berlitz School lingue moderne, 1920-
James Joyce taught there while he lived in Trieste
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| Pietro Coelli, Istria, 1930 |
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At the reception area, there was a poster for Bloomsday celebrations, June14-16, 2024.
James Joyce is really celebrated in Trieste. |
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| Monument to Maximilian of Habsburg. This monument by Johann Schilling returned to the public eye in 2008, after an exile that began in 1920, as happened to other Habsburg monuments. Maximilian is depicted in the uniform of an Austrian admiral, pointing towards Miramare. Like the fountain in Piazza Unità, the pedestal represents the four continents. |
We continued our walk near the water and saw the Eataly Trieste store. We took a quick look inside. Wine, pastas, and tomato products are less than Toronto prices. Other products are the same price and a few items had higher prices than the Toronto store. We have found the Eataly stores not very busy in Italy--- I think that Italians have gravitated back to their local stores. The patio area was lovely and I'm sure that on a sunny day, it would attract more people.
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| Eataly located near the Adriatic |
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| Boats nearby |
We headed back to Piazza Unità. It was time for some political speeches. A very formal, old-fashioned presentation with salutes, military bands, and various organizations like the military, coast guard, carabinieri and fire fighters represented. Our Canada Day celebrations are a lot more lively and fun.
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| Very solemn |
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| Speeches from the politicians |
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| Formalities on the Main Square |
It was getting cooler and cloudier, so we didn't stay long. We headed back to the apartment, where Chef Alonso made pasta with fresh tomato sauce with salami and grated pecorino cheese. We finished our bottle of wine and had a piece of chocolate for dessert. Definitely a day of flanêur in Trieste.
Monday June 3 is our last full day in Trieste. On June 4, we fly back to Toronto with a short layover in Rome. I will most likely post the blog of our last day when we get back home. It has been an incredible adventure and we highly, highly recommend a visit to Croatia, Slovenia and Trieste.
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