Overview
Orange Flag of the Italian Touring Club
If Busseto is not only a beautiful provincial town, an ancient capital of a small feudal state, but has also become a tourist destination for opera lovers worldwide, the credit goes to one man: Giuseppe Verdi. The Maestro par excellence was born in 1813 in Le Roncole, now Roncole Verdi, a hamlet of Busseto. After achieving success in Milan, he returned to live in the town center, on the porticoed via Roma. In 1845, he bought Palazzo Orlandi, at number 56, where he composed Rigoletto and Il Trovatore. Not far from there, at number 119, he had performed his first exhibitions in his youth: this was the residence of his patron Antonio Barezzi, who later became his father-in-law. The Museo Verdiano inside Casa Barezzi tells the whole story. There is also a square in town dedicated to Verdi, elegant and... green. It is dominated by a monument depicting the musician almost on a throne, made by Luigi Secchi (1913), with the Pallavicino Castle in the background. This castle originated in the 11th century, during the time of Adalberto Pallavicino, the founder of the family that made Busseto the capital of a small independent state, which later became part of the Farnese Duchy in 1587. Rebuilt in 1250, its appearance, all towers and battlements, comes from a 19th-century restoration in neo-Gothic style. The Municipality and the Verdi Theater, a jewel from 1868, hosting prestigious performances and concerts, are located here. On the same square, you will find the Collegiata di S. Bartolomeo and the Palazzo del Comune, both from the 15th century. The overall setting justifies the award of the Bandiera Arancione of the Touring Club Italiano to Busseto, especially considering its excellent gastronomy, which blends the traditions of Parma and Piacenza... Outside the historic city center, in a beautiful garden, stands the Pallavicino summer villa, built in the 16th century and now home to the Giuseppe Verdi National Museum. It houses period costumes, original or faithfully reproduced sets, and 19th-century furnishings. In the stables, the Renata Tebaldi Museum exhibits jewelry and stage costumes of the great Verdi interpreter.
However, there is one detail that the people of Busseto prefer not to remember. That is, that Verdi left Busseto shortly after returning, tired of the provincial atmosphere and, especially, the gossip about his romantic life and his second wife, Giuseppina Strepponi. Verdi moved with her to the countryside, to Sant’Agata. There, he built his villa, just a couple of kilometers north of Busseto, but already in another municipality: Villanova sull’Arda.
43011 Busseto PR, Italia
