Jewish presence in Piedmont, in the Northwest of Italy, dates back to late antiquity. In the 18th century, there were 12 Jewish ghettos in the region, and their inhabitants were Italian, Ashkenazi, Sephardic, and Provencal Jews. Their culture evolved over time, and became highly influential on a national scale, as Piedmontese Jews took a leading role in the Risorgimento, the Emancipation, and the shaping of Jewish identity following Italy's unification. The Piedmontese Jewish past is beautifully preserved today in several synagogue buildings across the region, and in the musical traditions that developed in their midst. The cultural legacy of this multicultural community has been augmented in the 20th century by the literary works of some of Italy's leading authors, like Primo Levi, Carlo Levi, and Natalia Ginzburg.
Speaker: Francesco Spagnolo (PhD Hebrew University, 2007) is the curator of The Magnes Collection of Jewish Art and Life at the University of California, Berkeley, where he is a professor of Music and Jewish Studies.
Speaker: Francesco Spagnolo (PhD Hebrew University, 2007) is the curator of The Magnes Collection of Jewish Art and Life at the University of California, Berkeley, where he is a professor of Music and Jewish Studies.