Massimo Mila

A great Italian Man

He was born in Turin on 14th August 1910. He attends “Massimo D’Azeglio” Liceo specializing in classical studies, where Augusto Monti is his teacher. At that time Cesare Pavese, Leone Ginzburg and Norberto Bobbio are students at “D’Azeglio” too. He teaches Latin to Giulio Einaudi, and he introduces him into the “brotherhood” of the ex-students of “D’Azeglio” (as Mila calls it). In it there are “Ces” or “Paves” or the “Barone” as Cesare Pavese; ”Agenzia Tass” or “the beared Lion of Monti Urali”, that’s Leone Ginzburg, born in Russia; “Bindi” that’s Norberto Bobbio, and then also Vittorio Foà, Giulio Carlo Argan, Ludovico Geymonat, a young teacher, Franco Antonicelli and others.

Giuseppe Verdi's opera

He takes a degree in Literature, when he’s 21, with a thesis whose title is “The operas of Verdi”. That thesis will be published with the same title in 1933, with the help of Benedetto Croce, by Laterza in Bari. It is the first work about Verdi written by Mila.

His passion for the Mountains

During the years at Liceo and at the University he starts to go to the mountains and to love them. His love was born in Coazze, thanks to his mother and to his first trips in Valsangone. Later his interest for the climbing will open to him the door of Club Alpino Accademico Italiano. Renato Chabod was one of his mountains teacher. He climbed a lot of mountains, he collected several “Four thousands” in the Alps and also some “Five thousands” outside Europe.

His opposition to the Fascist Regime

In Turin he starts to be against the Fascism. He was in prison for the first time in 1929 because of his antifascism. He joins to “Giustizia e Libertà”, and on 15th May 1935 he’s arrested for the second time, together with his friends Einaudi, Ginzburg, Foa, Antonicelli, Bobbio, Pavese, Carlo Levi and Luigi Salvatorelli. He’s sentenced to seven years. In Civitavecchia jail, he divides his cell with Vittorio Foà, Riccardo Bauer and Ernesto Rossi. After his freeing in 1940 he works with Einaudi and his publishing house, where he has as friends and colleagues Giaime Pintor, Felice Balbo, Cesare Pavese and Leone Ginzburg. With the Armistice of 8th September 1943, he joins to Resistenza in Canavese and Lanzo Valleys, later he becomes member of Partito d’Azione.

Teaching

After the war the “Giuseppe Verdi” Conservatory in Turin calls him to teach Music History. In 1962 the University offers him to be a professor, he works there until 1975. He works also for Einaudi Publishing House. He is a musical critic for “Unità” in Turin (1946-67), and for “L’Espresso” (1955-67) and since 1967 for “La Stampa”.
He’s a member of Santa Cecilia Accademy since 1956, he does also a literary activity (translating also Goethe, Schiller, Gotthelf, Hesse, Wiechert’s works and Wagner autobiography).
Since 1967 he’s been co-director of Nuova Rivista Musicale Italiana. On 26th February 1981 he’s involved in a car accident, where his wife dies. In 1985 he gets the International Prize “Feltrinelli” of Accademia of Lincei.

He dies in Turin on 26th December 1988

Further Reading

Works

• Il melodramma di Verdi (Bari, 1933; poi in: Verdi, ivi, 1958, e in: L'arte di Verdi, Torino, 1980);
• "La Donna serpente" di A. Casella (Milano, 1942);
• Cent'anni di musica moderna (ivi, 1944; Torino, 1981);
• W. A. Mozart (Torino, 1945; ampliato, Pordenone, 1980; 1985);
• Saggi mozartiani (Milano, 1945);
• Breve storia della musica (ivi, 1946; riveduta e aggiornata, Torino, 1963;1985);
• L'esperienza musicale e l'estetica (Torino, 1950; 1981);
• Cronache musicali 1955-59 (ivi, 1959);
• La giovinezza di Verdi (ivi, 1974);
• Maderna musicista europeo (ivi, 1976);
• Lettura della Nona Sinfonia (ivi, 1977, 1982);
• Lettura delle "Nozze di Figaro" (ivi, 1979);
• Compagno Strawinsky (ivi, 1983);
• I costumi della Traviata (Pordenone, 1984);
• Otto Concerti per orchestra di G. Petrassi (Milano, s. a., ma 1984);
• Terza pagina. 36 articoli (Torino, 1985).

La Stampa - 2 dicembre 2008
20 anni dalla morte di Massimo Mila.