Maksym Berezovsky remembered in Italy

On Nov. 6 a large number of representatives of the Ukrainian Diaspora in Italy gathered in Bologna, where the Philharmonic Society hosted a soiree commemorating the Ukrainian composer, Maksym Berezovsky. The festive event was organized by the Christian Society of Ukrainians in Italy and the Ukrainian parish of Bologna (Rev. Vasyl Potochniak), with the support of the Ukrainian Embassy in Italy. The festivities began with a liturgy at Bologna’s Church of the Body of Christ. Among those taking part in the concert at the Philharmonic Society were the society’s musicians and administration, representatives of the Ukrainian Embassy in Italy, and the Christian Society of Ukrainians in Italy. The library of the society organized an exhibit of archival documents relating to Berezovsky’s stay in the city. The documents reveal that the Ukrainian composer was the second foreign composer (after Mozart) whose name was once engraved on a memorial plaque at Bologna’s center of culture and art. A memorial plaque executed by Lviv sculptors was mounted in the library to perpetuate the memory of the Ukrainian composer. Ukrainians living in various Italian cities paid for the work involved in the festivities. (RISU)

N.B. Maksym Berezovsky (early 1740s-1777) was born in Hlukhiv and studied at the Theological Academy of Kyiv. In the spring of 1769 he went to Italy to further his education under the guidance of Martini, a celebrated professor and composer. As part of his examinations Berezovsky had to compose a polyphonic work on an assigned theme. Several months earlier the 14-year-old Mozart passed a similar exam. In Bologna Berezovsky was granted the status of a foreign member of the academy. K.G.