In Gardone Riviera, a village overlooking the shores of Lake Garda, stands a unique historical and artistic monument: the Vittoriale degli Italiani. This majestic residence was the home of the eclectic poet, aviator and politician Gabriele D’Annunzio during the last years of his life.   The small village between Salò and Toscolano Maderno gives us...

His biographers claim that Gabriele d’Annunzio was a teetotaler, or nearly so; however, seeing a label dedicated to him would have certainly tickled his vanity and self-esteem, two important aspects of his personality. To celebrate 160 years since the birth of the Poet, an undisputed protagonist of literature, but also of Italian history of the twe...

Gabriele D'Annunzio turns 160 years old. The Vittoriale degli Italiani, the sumptuous residence in Gardone Riviera where Gabriele D'Annunzio lived from 1921 until his death, which occurred on March 1, 1938, will be the scene of birthday celebrations for the Vate, who was born in Pescara, Italy, on March 12, 1863.Ahead of the 160th anniversary of D'...

One of the most celebrated characters to strut the stage of modern Italy is the remarkable Gabriele D’Annunzio. He is known as the vate (poet) and profeta (prophet). It is difficult to capture the totality of his work and distinguish fact from fiction. During an extraordinarily active life he managed to become many things: a child prodigy (publishe...

I often realize how much my love for Italy has greatly increased since We the Italians was born, and therefore from the moment I started to tell those who live in America about my country. I found that it doesn't just happen to me. Luca Cottini is a fantastic Italian who teaches at Villanova University, in Pennsylvania. He perfectly embodies all th...

In the list of the great Italian excellences who have found their fortune in America, one of the highest level names is that of Arturo Toscanini. A century has passed since an extraordinary event, an exceptional tour that saw him as a protagonist in America together with what would later become the orchestra of La Scala in Milan.  Today there is a...

On a recent afternoon, a little girl gently patted the shoulder of a statue of the Italian writer Gabriele d’Annunzio, depicted sitting cross-legged and reading on a bench in a central square. “This is a girl who shows respect,” said Rosa Cacioppo Mantini, a 92-year-old retired high school literature teacher and committed Fascist who nearly every...

On the morning of September 12 1919, Gabriele D’Annunzio, Italian author, poet, journalist, politician and Great War hero inspired by nationalist furore, entered Fiume (present-day Rijeka) with a group of renegade Italian officers and soldiers. They were greeted with joy by the local Italian population who wanted their city to become part of Italy,...

When Brendan McConville, an associate professor of music at UT, went to Italy on a Fulbright in 2016, he spent six months soaking up and recording the sounds of the country. During the program, he also translated those sounds into several original compositions based on the poetry of Gabriele D’Annunzio, the prized poet of the province of Abruzzo. T...