The America-Italy Society of Philadelphia (AISPHILA) is a

non-profit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

, founded in 1956 in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, Pennsylvania, to promote, by educational and cultural means, an international friendship between the

Republic of Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

and the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. The organization offers a series of lectures, films, concerts, and language studies to promote a broader understanding of the Italian cultural and artistic heritage.

History/Background

The America-Italy Society of Philadelphia was founded in 1956 largely through the creative and dynamic leadership of Dr. Giovanni Luciolli, who was Consul General of Italy of Philadelphia at that time with the help of the former president, John Price. Today, the organization has several hundred members in the greater

region. The AIS has been involved in several restoration projects over time. One of the earliest projects was CRIA (Committee to Rescue Italian Art), a committee that formed following the 1966 Flood of the Arno River, to rescue and restore artwork that was affected by the flood. The committee was composed of art historians, curators, and conservators. The AIS president, John Price, served as the Committee's Area Chair. In 1980, following the

earthquake An earthquakealso called a quake, tremor, or tembloris the shaking of the Earth's surface resulting from a sudden release of energy in the lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from those so weak they ...

that devastated many mountain villages east of

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

, the society funded and built a center for older citizens who had survived but lost everything.

Programs

AISPHILA promotes a mutual understanding between

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

and

American Culture The culture of the United States encompasses various social behaviors, institutions, and Social norm, norms, including forms of Languages of the United States, speech, American literature, literature, Music of the United States, music, Visual a ...

through their many different programs:

Language School

AISPHILA offers 14 different levels of weekly Italian language classes, private lessons, and full-immersion courses ranging from beginner to fluent.

Lectures & Cultural Events

The America-Italy Society of Philadelphia arranges various events each year that educate its members on

Italian history Italy has been inhabited by humans Prehistoric Italy, since the Paleolithic. During antiquity, there were many ancient peoples of Italy, peoples in the Italian peninsula, including Etruscan civilization, Etruscans, Latins, Samnites, Umbri, Cisal ...

, language culture,

art Art is a diverse range of cultural activity centered around ''works'' utilizing creative or imaginative talents, which are expected to evoke a worthwhile experience, generally through an expression of emotional power, conceptual ideas, tec ...

, and

literature Literature is any collection of Writing, written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially novels, Play (theatre), plays, and poetry, poems. It includes both print and Electroni ...

. AISPHILA hosts monthly films that are shown in Italian with English subtitles introduced by a guest lecturer.

Ente Gestore

As part of its mission to promote Italian culture and language, the America-Italy Society of Philadelphia acts as ''ente gestore'' (manager) of grants to public and private schools that offer Italian language instruction. With support from the Italian government and under the supervision of Dr. Domenico Teker, the Director of the Scholastic Office of the Consulate General of Italy in Boston, AIS promotes Italian language programs in high schools throughout the greater Philadelphia region.

Amerita Chamber Players/Concerts

AISPHILA sponsors a free concert series that is open to the public by the Amerita Chamber Players. Amerita concerts are held three times a year at the Temple Beth Zion-Beth Israel at 18th and Spruce St. in

Center City Philadelphia Center City includes the central business district and central neighborhoods of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It comprises the area that made up the City of Philadelphia prior to the Act of Consolidation, 1854, which extended the ci ...

History of the Amerita Chamber Players

The America-Italy Society presented its first concert of the Amerita Chamber Players in 1956 at

The Philadelphia Museum of Art ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...

, and their annual concerts of

Italian Baroque Italian Baroque (or ''Barocco'') is a stylistic period in Italian history and art that spanned from the late 16th century to the early 18th century. History The early 17th century marked a time of change for those of the Roman Catholic religion ...

music remain the Society's most popular event. The Amerita Chamber Players was founded by Philadelphia Orchestra violinist, Frank Costanzo and then Consulate General of Italy in Philadelphia, Dr. Giovanni Luciolli. By merging the words "America" and "Italy", the name "Amerita" was born to represent the combination of the two different cultures. What began as a small string orchestra is today, under the direction of

harpsichordist A harpsichordist is a person who plays the harpsichord. Harpsichordists may play as soloists, as accompanists, as chamber musicians, or as members of an orchestra, or some combination of these roles. Solo harpsichordists may play unaccompanied son ...

Davyd Booth (who serves on the Board of Directors) and bassist-gambist Michael Shahan, an ensemble consisting of a string quintet and harpsichord with the addition of

woodwinds Woodwind instruments are a family of musical instruments within the greater category of wind instruments. Common examples include flute, clarinet, oboe, bassoon, and saxophone. There are two main types of woodwind instruments: flutes and re ...

brass Brass is an alloy of copper and zinc, in proportions which can be varied to achieve different colours and mechanical, electrical, acoustic and chemical properties, but copper typically has the larger proportion, generally copper and zinc. I ...

, vocal soloists, and other instrumentalists.

Trips to Italy

AISPHILA organizes annual group and individual trips to Italy. The immersion experiences provide an opportunity to study the language, attend food and wine tasting, and visit museums and local establishments.

Vittorini Awards

The America-Italy Society of Philadelphia supports excellence in Italian studies at the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

with its Vittorini Fund, established in 1963 to honor the memory of Professor

Domenico Vittorini Domenico Vittorini (1892–1958) was an Italian-born writer and American academic. Biography Domenico Vittorini was born in Preturo, L'Aquila, Abruzzo, Italy on October 28, 1892 and died 66 years later in Havertown, Pennsylvania, on March 9, 1 ...

, beloved long-time member of the

Romance Languages The Romance languages, also known as the Latin or Neo-Latin languages, are the languages that are Language family, directly descended from Vulgar Latin. They are the only extant subgroup of the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-E ...

Faculty at the University of Pennsylvania. Prizes are awarded each year to encourage undergraduate students in the pursuit of majors and minors, and perhaps even careers, centering on

Italian culture The culture of Italy encompasses the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, and customs of the Italian peninsula throughout history. Italy has been a pivotal center of civilisation, playing a crucial role in the development of Western culture. I ...

. The awards are presented by the America-Italy Society at an annual ceremony held at the end of the spring semester at the University of Pennsylvania.

Restoration of Venetian Art

The America-Italy Society is an active member organization of the UNESCO International Committee for the Safeguarding of Venice and participates in saving and restoring Venetian Art and monuments. The America-Italy Society began its support for art restoration in

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

following the great flood of 1966 that devastated Venice and damaged many of the world's great art and architectural masterpieces. The international community banded together under the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to launch a campaign to assist the Italian government in the safeguarding of

Restoration Projects Undertaken by AISPHILA

* Church of Santa Maria della Visitazione: 58 ceiling panels (Umbrian School, 15th century) *

Cà Rezzonico Ca' Rezzonico () is a palazzo and art museum on the Grand Canal in the Dorsoduro of Venice, Italy. It is a particularly notable example of the 18th century Venetian baroque and rococo architecture and interior decoration, and displays paintings ...

: Ballroom ceiling frescoes by Giambattista Crosato (18th century) * Basilica Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari: The painting of the "Assumption of the Virgin" by Titian (16th century) * Palazzo Mocenigo: Fresco of "The Apotheosis of the Mocenigo Family" by Jacopo Guarana (18th century) * Basilica di Santa Maria Assunta, Torcello: Mosaics throughout the church interior (12th and 13th century) * Ospedaletto dei Derelitti: Sala della Musica (18th century) * The Church of San Martino: Altarpiece with four angels by Tullio Lombardo (16th century) *

San Michele in Isola San Michele in Isola is a Roman Catholic church, located on the Isola di San Michele, a small islet sited between Venice and Murano, which once sheltered a Camaldolese monastery (), but now houses the main cemetery of the city. The monastery was m ...

: Three wooden statues (16th century) * Flagpole dedicated to Doge

Francesco Morosini Francesco Morosini (26 February 1619 – 16 January 1694) was the Doge of Venice from 1688 to 1694, at the height of the Great Turkish War. He was one of the many Doges and generals produced by the Venetian noble Morosini family.Encyclopæd ...

in campo Santo Stefano

Tax-exemption legitimacy

AISPHILA is a tax-exempt, nonprofit organization under Sections 501(c)(3) and 509 (a)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code. AISPHILA is registered as a charitable organization in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

References

{{Reflist United States friendship associations Cultural promotion organizations Non-profit organizations based in Philadelphia 501(c)(3) organizations