Name: 68th WEEK OF SACRED MUSIC OF MONREALE - THE LIFE OF CHRIST
Start: 2026-10-05T21:00:00
Location: Cattedrale di Monreale

Federica Sardella

Adriana Di Paola

Orchestra Sinfonica Siciliana

Convinced by the successes he had achieved at the Société Nationale de Musique with his Violin Sonata and Quartet in C minor that chamber music suited him particularly well, in 1880 Fauré considered writing a sonata for cello and piano, starting, as he often did, with the second movement. Performed for the first time on June 21, 1880, at Saint-Saëns's house, this piece received a warm reception, which, however, was not sufficient to encourage Fauré to complete the sonata. In 1883, the composer therefore published this single movement, which shares the key of C minor with the preceding quartet, under the title Élégie . The work's immediate popularity prompted conductor Édouard Colonne to ask Fauré, in 1895, to compose a version for cello and orchestra. It was first performed in Paris at the Société Nationale de Musique on April 26, 1901, with Pablo Casals as soloist. It is a piece of intense lyricism, in which the cello, supported by repeated chords from the orchestra, creates a kind of funereal melody. In the central section, however, a softer and more passionate theme emerges, building to an expressive climax before fading away in the reprise of the opening melody.

La Vita D'eroe

Politeama Garibaldi - Palermo

"I wanted to write a work about our men, who will become heroes in the battle they are engaged in against the enemy for victory… While working on this new symphony, I thought about the greatness of our people, their heroism, their wonderful humanist ideas, their human values, our superb nature, our humanity, our beauty. […] I dedicate my Seventh Symphony to our battle against fascism, to our inevitable victory over the enemy, and to Leningrad, my hometown." 

Musica Contro La Guerra

Attesa, for strings, piano, two horns and percussion (100th anniversary of his birth)


Eliodoro Sollima, whose birth centenary falls this year,  has been a key figure in Sicilian musical life for over half a century. This fact means that his name, much less his music, has been widely distributed beyond the region, with major Italian and international publishers (Schott, Heinrichshofen, Curci, Ricordi, Sonzogno, Berbén, and Sifd) publishing his works. Many of his works were commissioned by prestigious institutions and associations (RAI for the Scarlatti Orchestra of Naples, ARC for the Teatro Nuovo in Milan, AIDEM for the Pitti Palace in Florence, INDA for the Greek Theatre of Syracuse, the Teatro Massimo in Palermo, EAOSS, and the Orestiadi in Gibellina) and have been conducted by such masters as E. Gracis, Z. Pesko, M. Inoue, G. Ferro, A. Ceccato, F. Scaglia, O. Ziino, P. Bellugi, and N. Wiss. His compositional output includes over 300 works, spanning symphonic and chamber music, sacred, stage, and ballet music, and children's piano pieces to compositions conceived as homages to great musicians of the past. His works have received significant recognition, including the Variazioni concertanti for orchestra (1962), which was honored at the Trieste International Competition; the Quartet  for flute, clarinet, violin, and cello, which won first prize at the 1965 Rome National Composers' Exhibition; and the Piano Sonata , which won first prize overall at the 1966 Treviso National Competition. Since 1978, Eliodoro Sollima has been a member of SIAE (Italian Society of Authors and Publishers) for the quantity and quality of performances of his music. In addition to his work as a composer, Sollima always maintained a fruitful relationship between his roles as pianist and teacher. The culmination of this intertwining of experiences is the didactic work Come nasce la musica (Curci, 1987).

Forme Della Libertà

A true child prodigy , Erich Wolfgang Korngold was just 11 years old when, in 1909, he composed the pantomime ballet Der Schneemann. According to his son George, the piano score was published in a limited, private edition by his father Julius, a renowned music critic for the prestigious newspaper "Neue Freie Presse." Immediately afterward, Julius Korngold sent copies of the score, originally written for piano four hands, to some of his friends in the Viennese musical world, including Gustav Mahler, whom he called the young genius, and Alexander von Zemlinsky, Erich's teacher, who orchestrated it. This work, which already proved to be a mature work and not simply a compositional exercise by a gifted student, had such a resonance that Emperor Franz Joseph himself ordered its performance at a gala evening on October 4, 1910, at the Vienna Hofper. Korngold's precocious musical talents emerge already in the Prelude to this work, based on a theatrical fable conceived by the composer himself. The plot revolves around Pierrot's love for Colombina, which is thwarted by her stern uncle, Pantalone. The tale's theatrical, wintry setting is evocatively rendered in the Prelude , which is notable for the lyricism that would distinguish Korngold's later film scores. Placed in the second act of the opera, the Serenade constitutes one of the most lyrical moments of the entire composition, as the composer gave a musical form to the passionate singing of Pierrot, who, disguised as a snowman and positioned under his beloved's window, woos the young woman with a poignant and melancholy melody, entrusted now to the solo violin and now to the woodwinds. 

Vienna 1900

"I kept the title Symphonie Espagnole first because it captured my thoughts well—namely, a solo violin soaring above the rigid form of an old symphony—and second because the title was much less banal than those that had been proposed. The outcry and criticism have subsided; the title will remain." 

Thus an annoyed Édouard Lalo responded to the objections of his contemporaries regarding this composition, which, in reality, does not follow the classical canons of a symphony, but rather approaches the structure of a violin concerto. A skilled violinist himself, Lalo composed this work in 1874 for Pablo de Sarasate. Sarasate, who at a young age had become one of the greatest virtuosos on the European musical scene, was eager to expand his repertoire with compositions by celebrated composers that could showcase his extraordinary technical skills; he therefore asked eminent composers, including Saint-Saëns and Lalo himself, to write concertos specifically for him. First performed at the Concerts Populaires in Paris on February 7, 1875, with Sarasate as soloist, this Symphonie is effectively a concerto in which Spain is evoked through the inclusion of rhythms and melodies drawn from the Iberian musical tradition. 

Romanticismo Infinito

In the summer of 1878, Brahms, returning from Italy, stopped in the village of Pörtschach, in Carinthia. His initial intention was to reach Vienna quickly, but drawn by the beauty and serenity of the place, he remained longer, as he himself wrote to his friend Theodor Billroth: “I stopped in this village on my way back from Italy, intending to continue on to Vienna. But the first day was so beautiful that I decided to stay the second; the second so beautiful that I decided to stay the third, and so on. Snow-white mountains, the blue lake, the trees covered in a tender green... no one could argue with me.”

It was in this splendid setting that the composer conceived his new work. His contemplation of a grand symphonic-instrumental work is also evident from his request for a large amount of music paper to be sent from Vienna, and from a letter to the critic Eduard Hanslick, in which he wrote: "So many melodies wander around this village that one must be careful not to trample on them." 

La Magia Della Danza

This year, too, the Sicilian Symphony Orchestra will celebrate Christmas with its audience through a special event. The program offers a fascinating and rich musical journey through the universal soundtrack of this important Christian holiday. The concert opens with Leroy Anderson's rousing " Sleigh Ride" (1946), renowned for his descriptive use of percussion, evoking the sound of horses trotting and the cracking of whips on the snow. Later, the same composer will perform " A Christmas Festival ," a rhapsodic overture that interweaves the most famous traditional carols. A profound sense of intimacy and nostalgia emanates from the pieces created during the dramatic years of the Second World War. This is the case of White Christmas , composed by Irving Berlin in 1940 and performed for the first time the following year during the program The Kraft Music Hall , and of I'll Be Home for Christmas  (1943) by Walter Kent, whose lyrics feature a soldier stationed abroad who writes to his family. This trend is joined by the poignant sweetness of Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas  by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane, originally introduced by Judy Garland in the famous musical film Meet Me in St. Louis  (1944).

Concerto Di Natale

This year, too, the Orchestra Sinfonica Siciliana invites its audiences on a fascinating journey into the heart of Viennese musical culture between the 19th and 20th centuries. The opening performance features the overture to Johann Strauss Jr.'s three-act operetta, Der Zigeunerbaron ( The Gypsy Baron ), based on a text by Ignaz Schnitzer, which premiered to great acclaim on October 24, 1885, at the Theater an der Wien. The overture, which previews the operetta's main themes, is notable for its orchestration, which vividly evokes Hungarian exoticism, alternating proud gypsy rhythms with seductive waltz movements. Composed in 1902 at the behest of Princess Pauline von Metternich for a sumptuous masked ball, the waltz Gold und Silber,  Op. 79 ( Gold and Silver ) by Franz Lehár stands out for its perfectly balanced thematic writing and a series of emotional contrasts, while the triangle gives a “silvery” touch. The polka repertoire was inaugurated by Im Krapfenwald'l  op. 336 ( In the Krapfen Forest , 1869) by Johann Strauss Jr., which recreates the bucolic atmosphere of the Viennese woods by introducing toy instruments that perfectly imitate the calls of birds, among which the obstinate and humorous call of the cuckoo stands out. His younger brother Eduard composed the popular Ohne Bremse  ( Without Brakes ), a fast polka Op. 238  , composed in 1874, which is notable for its pressing rhythm that evokes, precisely, a mad race without brakes.

Concerto Di Capodanno

Born in Yerevan, Alexander Grigoryevich Arutiunian studied piano and composition at his hometown Conservatory, graduating on the eve of World War II. In 1946, he moved to Moscow to study composition with Litinsky and in 1949 received the Stalin Prize for a cantata. Returning to Yerevan in 1954, he taught at the Conservatory and became artistic director of the Armenian State Philharmonic. Considered by Aram Khachaturyan as a promising Soviet composer, Arutiunian achieved widespread acclaim thanks to a body of work that emphasized the Armenian musical tradition, which also influenced the melodies of his 1950 Concerto for Trumpet and Orchestra. The work had initially been conceived in 1943 for Zsolak Vartasarian, principal trumpet of the Armenian Philharmonic Orchestra, who died during the war. The Concerto was then premiered by Aykaz Messlayan, while Timofei Dokschitzer promoted its international fame by introducing it to the United States. Having become a permanent fixture in the repertoire, the piece has also become a recurring audition piece at the Juilliard School.

Prospettive Sonore

Abun for male voice, violin and orchestra


Composed in 2018 and performed for the first time on September 16 of the same year at the Galleria d'Arte Moderna in Palermo on the occasion of the VIII International Festival of Palermo Classica — with Rocco Tarantino (vocals), Gioacchino Di Stefano (violin) and the Palermo Classica Symphony Orchestra conducted by Carmelo Caruso —,  Abun , the Lord's Prayer in Aramaic (the same language spoken by Jesus Christ), musically and humanly reflects the poetics of the Palermo-born composer Simone Piraino, whose Canto notturno was performed in its world premiere by the Sinfonica Siciliana last year .

Memoria E Modernità


A journey into the heart of Sicily through the music and voice of Rosa Balistreri, an authentic and unforgettable interpreter of the soul of our land.

Her songs are given new life through the power of the Sicilian Symphony Orchestra, the protagonist of a musical reinterpretation that intertwines symphonic language with the richness of folk tradition, under the direction of Maestro Alberto Maniaci. Salvatore Nogare's arrangements and music restore a new orchestral dimension to Rosa's repertoire, enhancing its power, poetry, and profoundly Sicilian character.

Giving voice to this story are soloists Simona Di Gregorio and Noa Flandina, along with the Children's Choir of the Fondazione Orchestra Sinfonica Siciliana, led by Maestro Vincenzo Marino. Traditional Sicilian folk dances, choreographed by Pietro Tutone, bring to the stage the body, rhythm, and gestures of an ancient and still vibrant culture.

Giovanni Parrinello's sound research plays a special role, introducing traditional Sicilian sounds, rhythms, and influences into the musical structure, creating an original dialogue between popular heritage and the orchestra's sound.

Elisa Parrinello's direction and dramaturgy create a grand scenic narrative of music, song, and dance, exploring traditions, memory, and history. Stefano Canzoneri's sets and Elisa Parrinello, Marja Hoffmann, and Patrizia Aiello's costumes help recreate the atmospheres, places, and images of Sicily on stage, transforming the show into a visual journey into the island's identity.

A Sicily made of work and celebrations, of pain and hope, of sea and land, of voices and silences.

SICILY, THE LAND OF ROSE is a meeting of symphony orchestra, folk singing, choir, folk dances, traditional sounds, scenography and costumes, in which each element contributes to the identity of a land.

Sicilia, La Terra Di Rosa

Incontri Musicali Del Terzo Tipo - "foss Late Night"

In this concert, the reading of meditations written by Pope Francis merges with the great European sacred musical tradition and the historical memory of Monreale. On the occasion of the seven-hundredth anniversary of the miraculous Crucifix of the Collegiate Church of Monreale, music becomes prayer, following a sonic journey that unfolds through the late-Romantic mysticism of Franz Liszt's Stations of the Cross , the composed and celestial pain of Giovanni Battista Pergolesi's Stabat Mater , and the refined intimacy of Luigi Boccherini's, culminating, finally, in the most authentic popular devotion, enshrined in the historic Hymns to the Crucifix of the Monreale tradition.