23/2/2021 Biography - Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco

Biography

On 13 July 1939, Mario and Clara Castelnuovo-Tedesco boarded the S.S. Saturnia in Trieste with their two sons. Ostensibly, this
trip concert tour with a return to Italy in August. In truth, the family was discreetly emigrating to America as a result of Italy’s re
Although the ship’s printed manifesto listed them as “Italian,” someone scratched through that and wrote “Hebrew” after each

This voyage marked the de ning line that bifurcated the life of Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco. The Castelnuovo-Tedescos returne
war, but never felt truly Italian again; at the same time, Mario and Clara, who became US citizens in 1948, never became truly A
between two continents” is how Mario described his life.

THE ITALIAN YEARS: 1895-1939

Castelnuovo-Tedesco’s mother recognized his musical talent and set him on the path that took him to Ildebrando Pizzetti, the
Castelnuovo-Tedesco’s musical voice became so pronounced that he became identi ed by the singular sobriquet, musicista o
sound, in uenced by Debussy’s Impressionism and Pizzetti’s austere contrapuntalism, developed into a distinctively re ned vo
parallel chords, polytonal blocks of sound, long owing melodies and a uent counterpoint.

By the 1930s, Castelnuovo-Tedesco emerged not only as one of Italy’s leading contemporary composers but was also a sought
insightful critic. His collaboration with three speci c performers helped elevate him to international prominence and continued
entire life and career – Andrés Segovia and the guitar, Jascha Heifetz and the violin, and Gregor Piatigorsky and the violoncello
the trajectory of Castelnuovo-Tedesco’s life and career…

…at age forty-four, when I saw my successful career in Italy cut short, the edi ce I had so patiently constructed
with a single stroke of the pen, I asked myself, ‘À quoi bon’? What’s the point? Both glory and renown appear to
‘vanitas vanitatum’.

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23/2/2021 Biography - Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco

THE AMERICAN YEARS: 1939-1968

On 27 July 1939, as the family disembarked in New York, Toscanini’s personal assistant met them at the dock to help with arran
already been reached for the composer’s American debut performing his second piano concerto with the New York Philharmo
preparations for a contract with MGM that took Castelnuovo-Tedesco to Los Angeles, where he lived until his death in 1968. Ho
a di erent emphasis. This is not to imply that there was a lessening in either quality or quantity of his American output, as is d
internationally prestigious Davide Campari Prize, which he won in 1958 for his opera The Merchant of Venice. However, he did lo
increasing focus on his list of students including John Williams, Henry Mancini, Jerry Goldsmith and Nelson Riddle. As a teacher
was far reaching, beyond just the world of lm. After he was once jokingly introduced as the “Father of West Coast Jazz”, one w
nearly telling the truth”. When speaking of his life, Castelnuovo-Tedesco re ected that music and composition in America beca

…an “act of faith”, of the faith I inherited from my father, from my mother, from my grandfather and which is so
words of the Psalm which my grandfather used to sing, “I have been young and now I am old, yet have not seen

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23/2/2021 Biography - Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco

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