The Conservatorio di Musica Arrigo Boito, better known in English as the Parma Conservatory, is a

music conservatory A music school is an educational institution specialized in the study, training, and research of music. Such an institution can also be known as a school of music, music academy, music faculty, college of music, music department (of a larger i ...

Parma Parma (; ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, Giuseppe Verdi, music, art, prosciutto (ham), Parmesan, cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,986 inhabitants as of 2025, ...

, Italy. It was originally established as the Regia Scuola di Canto, a school for singing in 1819 by

Marie Louise, Duchess of Parma Marie Louise (Maria Ludovica Leopoldina Franziska Theresia Josepha Lucia; 12 December 1791 – 17 December 1847) was Duchess of Parma from 11 April 1814 until her death in 1847. She was Napoleon's second wife and as such Empress of the French a ...

, and expanded into a conservatory of music in 1825. In 1840 instrumental music instruction began, followed by the addition of music composition, conducting, and other musical studies. Initially a school open only to men, the Parma Conservatory became a co-education institution in 1855 known as the Regia Scuola di Musica. In 1888 the school moved from being a private school to a public institution operated by the

Government of Italy The government of Italy is that of a democratic republic, established by the Italian constitution in 1948. It consists of Legislature, legislative, Executive (government), executive, and Judiciary, judicial subdivisions, as well as of a head of ...

. Its name was changed to its present title to honor the composer

Arrigo Boito Arrigo Boito (; born Enrico Giuseppe Giovanni Boito; 24 February 1842 10 June 1918) was an Italian librettist, composer, poet and critic whose only completed opera was ''Mefistofele''. Among the operas for which he wrote the libretto, libretti ar ...

in 1919.

History

The first school of music in the city of Parma was the Regia Scuola di Canto; a school founded in 1769 with the purpose of training vocalists attached to the Teatro Ducale

opera house An opera house is a theater building used for performances of opera. Like many theaters, it usually includes a stage, an orchestra pit, audience seating, backstage facilities for costumes and building sets, as well as offices for the institut ...

. It was housed at the Chiesa di Santa Maria del Carmine. The school was operated by Francesco Z. Poncini, the organist of the

Sanctuary of Santa Maria della Steccata The Shrine of Santa Maria della Steccata is a Greek-cross design Renaissance church in central Parma, Italy. The name derives from the fence () in the church. A Nursing Madonna is enshrined within, crowned on 27 May 1601 by a Marian devotee, Fra ...

, until it closed in 1792. The city was without a music school until the Parma Conservatory was established with the financial backing and political will of

, the wife of

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

; also under the name Regia Scuola di Canto. The school was originally housed at the Chiesa di San Ludovico and was initially established as another school for singing in 1819 with the purpose of providing trained choristers to sing at the Teatro Ducale and the Chiesa di San Ludovico. In 1825 the school was expanded into a conservatory, but did not provide instruction in instrumental music until 1840. Later additional studies in composition, conducting, and other music topics were added and by 1859 the full offering of the canon of studies in music was established. The Parma Conservatory was originally only open to men. A separate school of music for women was established in the city in 1833, and in 1855 that school merged with the Parma Conservatory to create a co-education institution known as the Regia Scuola di Musica. Composer and conductor Giovanni Rossi was director of the conservatory from 1864 through 1874. In 1888 the Parma Conservatory became a public institution operated by the

; joining the three other state run music conservatories at that time: the

Milan Conservatory The Milan Conservatory, also known as the Conservatorio di Milano and the Conservatorio Giuseppe Verdi, is a Music school, college of music in Milan, Italy. History The conservatory was established by a royal decree of 1807 in Milan, capital ...

, the

Naples Conservatory This is a list of music conservatories in Naples, Italy. Conservatorio di San Pietro a Majella The Naples Conservatory of Music is a music school located in Naples, Italy. It is situated in the complex of San Pietro a Majella. It was originally ...

and the

Palermo Conservatory The Conservatorio di Musica Alessandro Scarlatti (English: Conservatory of Music Alessandro Scarlatti), better known in English as the Palermo Conservatory, is a music conservatory in Palermo, Italy. One of the oldest music schools in Italy, the or ...

. The composer

succeeded

Giovanni Bottesini Giovanni Bottesini (22 December 1821 – 7 July 1889) was an Italian Romantic composer, conductor, and a double bass virtuoso. Biography Born in Crema, Lombardy, he was taught the rudiments of music by his father, an accomplished clarinetist ...

as director of the Parma Conservatory in 1889; serving in that post until 1897. The conservatory's name was changed to the Conservatorio di Musica Arrigo Boito in honor of the composer in 1919. The conservatory has housed the

Premio Mario Zanfi The Premio Mario Zanfi, also known as the Franz Liszt Competition in Parma, is an international piano competition held at the Parma Conservatory since 1981. Past jurors include Lazar Berman, Louis Kentner, Jenő Jandó, Leslie Howard, Azio Corghi, ...

, an international piano competition also known in English as the Franz Liszt Competition, since 1981.

Notable alumni

Mariella Adani Mariella Adani (born December 17, 1934) is an Italian classical soprano who had an active career in operas, concerts, and recitals from the 1950s through the 1980s. She has sung under the musical direction of Vittorio Gui, Carlo Maria Giulini, N ...

, soprano * Bruno Barilli, composer and actor *

Gaetano Bavagnoli Gaetano Bavagnoli (Parma, 1879 – Milan, June 5, 1933) was an Italian conductor who was particularly known for his work within the field of opera. He was mainly active within Italy's major opera houses during the first third of the 20th century; ...

, conductor * Nazario Carlo Bellandi, organist, pianist, harpsichordist, and composer * Carlo Bergonzi, tenor * Giovanni Bolzoni, composer and violinist *

Cleofonte Campanini Cleofonte Campanini (1 September 1860 – 19 December 1919) was an Italian conductor and violinist. As a teenager he had a brief but successful career as a concert violinist in Italy and in theaters in Berlin and London. He abandoned the violin ...

, conductor and violinist *

Italo Campanini Italo Campanini (30 June 1845 – 14 November 1896) was a leading Italian operatic tenor, whose career reached its height in London in the 1870s and in New York City in the 1880s and 1890s. He had a repertoire of 80 operas and was the brother of ...

, tenor *

Ettore Campogalliani Ettore Campogalliani (30 September 1903 – 3 June 1992) was an Italian composer, musician and teacher. Campogalliani studied piano in 1921, graduating from the Conservatory of Bologna. He then studied composition at the Conservatory of Parma i ...

, composer *

Ailem Carvajal Gómez Ailem Carvajal Gómez (Havana, November 22, 1972), is a Cuban composer, pianist and professor. Academic background Ailem Carvajal began to study music in the Leonardo Luberta Conservatory at Isla de la Juventud and at a later time she continued at ...

, composer * Michael Chapman, bassoonist *Serena Daolio, soprano *

Daniela Dessì Daniela Dessì (14 May 1957 – 20 August 2016) was an Italian operatic soprano. Life and career Born in Genoa, Italy, Dessì completed her studies at the Arrigo Boito Conservatory in Parma and the Accademia Musicale Chigiana in Siena. She ...

, soprano *

Jolanda di Maria Petris Jolanda di Maria Petris (1916—1987) was an Italian-Finnish operatic soprano and voice pedagog. Following studies at the Liceo Musicale (now Conservatorio Giovanni Battista Martini) in Bologna and the Parma Conservatory in the early 1930s, she ...

, soprano * Aldo Ferraresi, violinist *

Vito Frazzi Vito Frazzi (1 August 1888 – 7 July 1975) was an Italian neo-romantic composer. He was born in San Secondo Parmense, and studied at the Parma Conservatory, where he learnt composition from Guido Alberto Fano. From 1912 to 1958 he taught pian ...

, composer *

Giorgia Fumanti Giorgia Fumanti (born February 22, 1975) is an Italian soprano singer of operatic pop and crossover music based in Montreal, Canada since 2002. She is also a composer, producer and arranger. Her debut EMI album ''From My Heart'' reached the top 20 ...

, soprano *

Adalgisa Gabbi Adalgisa Gabbi (23 May 1857 – 16 December 1933) was an Italian operatic soprano. After her 1875 debut in Lecco as Maria in Filippo Marchetti's ''Ruy Blas'', she first made a name abroad, performing in Poland, Latin America, and London. It was ...

, soprano *

Franco Ghione Franco Ghione (1886–1964) was an Italian conductor and violinist. He graduated from the Parma Conservatory and became a violinist for the Parma Theatre and the Augusteo in Rome. He began a conducting career in 1913 and conducted in many oper ...

, conductor and violinist *

Fiorello Giraud Fiorello Giraud (22 October 1870 – 28 March 1928) was an Italian operatic tenor who sang leading roles in many Italian opera houses during the course of his career, including La Scala, the Teatro Regio di Parma, and the Teatro Regio di Torino ...

, tenor *

Luigi Infantino Luigi Infantino (; 24 April 1921 – 22 June 1991) was an Italian operatic tenor, particularly associated with the lyric Italian and French repertories. Luigi Infantino was born in Racalmuto, and studied at the Parma Conservatory with Italo B ...

, tenor *

Agide Jacchia Agide Jacchia (5 January 1875 – 29 November 1932

, conductor *

Gorni Kramer Francesco Kramer Gorni (22 July 1913 – 26 October 1995), known as Gorni Kramer, was an Italian songwriter, musician and band leader. Biography He was born Francesco Kramer Gorni in Rivarolo Mantovano, Lombardy. Despite the exotic sound of ...

, accordionist , double bass player, and bandleader * Luigi Lunari, writer *

Leone Magiera Leone Magiera (born 26 June 1934) is an Italian pianist and conductor. Career Early life He was born in Modena in 1934, the son of an engineer named Ubaldo. He belonged to an ancient Modenese family of jurists. Anna Maria, his mother, was from a l ...

, pianist and conductor * Gianfranco Masini, conductor *

Virgilio Mortari Virgilio Mortari (December 6, 1902 – September 5, 1993) was an Italian composer and teacher. Biography Mortari was born in Passirana di Lainate, near Milan in 1902. He studied at the Milan Conservatory with Costante Adolfo Bossi and Ildebrando ...

, composer *

Carlo Negrini Carlo Negrini (24 June 1826 – 14 March 1865) was an Italian spinto tenor and creator of Gabriele Adorno in Verdi’s opera ''Simon Boccanegra''. Early career Born as Carlo Villa to a humble family in Piacenza, Negrini studied first at the ...

, tenor * Anastasiya Petryshak, violinist *

Ildebrando Pizzetti Ildebrando Pizzetti (20 September 1880 – 13 February 1968) was an Italian composer of classical music, as well as a musicologist and a music critic. Biography Pizzetti was born in Parma in 1880. He was part of the "Generation of 1880" alon ...

, composer * Enrico Polo, violinist and composer * Elvina Ramella, soprano *

Marina Rebeka Marina Rebeka (born 10 September 1980) is a Latvians, Latvian soprano, active on both opera and concert stages. Associated with Violetta in Verdi's ''La traviata'', she performs primarily in the 19th-century Italian and French repertoire, most n ...

, soprano *

Gino Redi Gino Redi (26 November 1908 – 27 September 1962) was an Italian composer. He was sometimes credited as P.G. Redi. Biography Born Luigi Pulci in Rome, after graduating in composition at the Conservatory of Parma, Redi moved to Milan where he ...

, composer *

Sesto Rocchi Sesto Rocchi (1909–1991) was a violin maker from Reggio Emilia, Italy. Biography Sesto Rocchi was born in Reggio Emilia, Italy. He started his violin making studies at the School of Violin Making at the Parma Conservatory under Gaetano Sg ...

, violin maker *

Luca Salsi Luca Salsi (born 19 March 1975) is an Italian operatic baritone, who is known for portraying characters in Giuseppe Verdi's operas at leading opera houses internationally. He was recognised by the international press in April 2015 when he not onl ...

, baritone *

Luciano Sgrizzi Luciano Sgrizzi (30 October 1910 – 11 September 1994) was an Italian harpsichordist, organist, pianist and composer. Life and career Luciano Sgrizzi was born in Bologna on October 30, 1910. His father, Domenico Sgrizzi, was a postal worker wh ...

, harpsichordist, organist, pianist and composer *

Renata Tebaldi Renata Tebaldi ( , ; 1 February 1922 – 19 December 2004) was an Italian spinto soprano, lirico-spinto soprano popular in the post-World War II, war period, and especially prominent as one of the stars of La Scala, Teatro di San Carlo, San ...

, soprano *

Camillo Togni Camillo Togni (18 October 1922 – 28 November 1993) was an Italian composer, teacher, and pianist. Coming from a family of independent means, he was able to pursue his art as he saw fit, regardless of changing fashions or economic pressure. ...

, composer *

Arturo Toscanini Arturo Toscanini (; ; March 25, 1867January 16, 1957) was an Italian conductor. He was one of the most acclaimed and influential musicians of the late 19th and early 20th century, renowned for his intensity, his perfectionism, his ear for orche ...

, conductor * Rino Vernizzi, bassoonist *

Vittoria Yeo Vittoria Yeo (born 20 December 1980) is a South Korean soprano. Early life and training Yeo was born in Seoul, South Korea, where she started her musical studies and graduated in opera singing at the Seokyeong University in Seoul. She moved ...

, soprano *

Maria Zamboni Maria Zamboni (25 July 1895 – 25 March 1976) was an Italian operatic soprano who had a prolific career in Italy and South America between 1921 and 1936. Admired for her vivid character portrayals and expressive singing, Zamboni was a popular ...

, soprano * Amilcare Zanella, composer, conductor and pianist * Michele Zocca, record producer and composer

Notable faculty

Marcello Abbado Marcello Abbado (7 October 19264 June 2020) was an Italian pianist, composer, conductor and academic teacher. His compositions include several orchestral works, two ballets, numerous pieces for solo piano, and chamber music. As a pianist, he pla ...

, pianist and composer *

, composer and librettist *

, double bass player, conductor and composer *

Italo Brancucci Italo Brancucci (1904, in La Spezia – 1958, in Rome) was an Italian composer and singing teacher. He taught at the Conservatorio Arrigo Boito in Parma for many years. Several of his pupils went on to have major opera careers, including Luigi Infa ...

, composer and voice teacherFurlotti, p. 45 * Attilio Brugnoli, composer, pianist and musicologistSimonetti, Silvana (1972).
Brugnoli, Attilio
. ''

Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani The ''Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani'' () is a biographical dictionary published in 100 volumes by the Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana, started in 1960 and completed in 2020. It includes about 40,000 biographies of distinguished Italia ...

'', Volume 14.

Treccani Institute Giovanni Treccani for the publication of the Italian Encyclopedia (), also known as Treccani Institute or simply Treccani, is a cultural institution of national interest, active in the publishing field, founded by Giovanni Treccani ...

. *

, composer * Paolo Castaldi, composer and writer on music * Giuliano Ciannella, tenor *

Franco Fabbri Franco Fabbri (born 1949) is a Brazilian-born Italian musician, musicologist and broadcaster. Born in São Paulo in 1949, from 1965 Fabbri was guitarist, vocalist and composer for Stormy Six, regarded as one of the most interesting Italian pro ...

, musicologist *Luca Fanfoni, violinist * Guido Alberto Fano, composer, pianist, and conductor *

Alceo Galliera Alceo Galliera (3 May 1910 – 21 April 1996) was a distinguished Italy, Italian Conducting, conductor and composer. He was the son of Arnaldo Galliera (1871—1934) who taught in organ class at the Parma Conservatory. Galliera was born in Milan i ...

, conductor and composer * Giuseppe Gallignani, composer and conductor * Giorgio Federico Ghedini, composer * Carlo Jachino, composer * Achille Longo, composer *

Gian Francesco Malipiero Gian Francesco Malipiero (; 18 March 1882 – 1 August 1973) was an Italian composer, musicologist, music teacher and editor. Life Early years Born in Venice into an aristocratic family, the grandson of the opera composer Francesco Malipiero, Gi ...

, composer and musicologist *

Roberto Molinelli Roberto Molinelli (born 1963, Ancona) is an Italian composer, conductor and violist. He has graduated with honors and won prizes in national and international competitions. His CD on Carl Reinecke's chamber music was awarded with "CD of the Mon ...

* Federico Mompellio (also alumnus), musicologist, music editor, music librarian, and music critic * Enzo Muccetti, bassoonist * Pietro Scarpini, pianist, harpsichordist, composer and conductor * Rito Selvaggi, composer, pianist, conductor, and poet * Gaetano Sgarabotto, luthier * Giovanni Tebaldini, scholar, composer and conductor * Paolo Ugoletti, composerJ.R. Jimenez, Ugoletti, Paolo, in Dizionario Enciclopedico della Musica e dei Musicisti DEUMM, Unione Tipografico - Editrice Torinese UTET, 1988,

References

Citations

Bibliography

External links

Official Website of the Parma Conservatory
{{coord, 44.79983, 10.32473, format=dms, type:edu_region:IT, display=title Music schools in Italy Music in Parma Schools in Parma 1819 establishments in Italy 1825 establishments in Italy