Antonio Carlos Gomes: Composer of two worlds, XIXth Century
Related Documents
Eight institutions in Brazil and the Museum of La Scala Theatre in Milan safeguard the documents of composer Antonio Carlos Gomes (1836-1896), who belonged to both the European and New World musical traditions. Born in Brazil, he made his career in Milan during the golden age of Italian opera. He is considered the greatest operatic composer of the second part of the 19th century in Latin America: his work succeeded in crossing the Atlantic. Gomes always sought out musical originality, despite the influence of Italian opera.
Gomes's work had its grand world premiere at La Scala Theatre in Milan, on March 18, 1870. It was his third opera called "Il Guarany." Giuseppe Verdi himself recognized its quality, writing to the director of the "Gazzetta di Ferrara" to state: "It gave me great satisfaction to attend the presentation of the work of my colleague Gomes and I can assure you it is a refined work that reveals a fiery soul, of a true musical genius".
The collection reflects his enormous production, which gained international recognition in its own time. An example of which is the anthem score written for the United States Independence Centennial (commissioned by Emperor Dom Pedro II as a gift to the president of that country, Ulysses Grant) that premiered in Philadelphia on July 4, 1876.
Although by 1864 Antonio Carlos Gomes was no longer living in Brazil, he was committed to the political and social problems of his homeland. Romantic in nature, his operas are rooted in realism. His characters are made of flesh and blood. "Il Guarany" theme is the struggle between Indians, Spaniards and Portuguese in colonial Brazil. Salvator Rosa deals with the history of the 1647 Neapolitan revolution. He worked toward the abolition of slavery as a consecrated monarchist and great admirer of Dom Pedro II and the Brazilian imperial family. To celebrate the liberation of the slaves, he wrote his opera "Lo Schiavo", and dedicated it to Princess Regent "Dona Isabel", who signed the law ending slavery in the country on May 13, 1888.
This nomination was inscribed on the Memory of the World International Register and on the Regional Register for Latin America and the Caribbean in 2017.
Risks encountered
Environmental issues
| Identified risks | Level of risk |
|---|---|
Moisture | Low |
Temperature | Low |
Light (visible light, ultraviolet radiation, etc.) | None |
Dust | None |
Pollution | None |
Pests (rodents, animals, insects, etc.) | None |
Microorganisms (bacteria, mould, etc.) | Low |
Management or organizational issues
| Identified risks | Level of risk |
|---|---|
Lack of maintenance, including cleaning | None |
Inadequate building | Low |
Building with structural damage | None |
Lack of an adequate warehouse | Low |
Lack of boxes and/or archive materials | Low |
Lack of human resources | Moderate |
Lack of security measures | None |
Insufficient budget to operate | Low |
More specific conservation actions are needed with respect to the documentation, such as increasing and improving the storage, associated with the intensification of the material investigation. As a public institution, it would be necessary to increase the number of employees (civil servants).
Natural disaster risks
| Identified risks | Level of risk |
|---|---|
Fires | None |
Rains | Low |
Mudslides or landslides | Low |
Floods | None |
Hurricanes, cyclones, storms | None |
Earthquakes | None |
Tsunamis | None |
Volcanic eruptions | None |
Temperature increase | None |
In 2022, the city of Petrópolis was affected by heavy rains, which compromised some spaces in the Imperial Museum complex, although not the historical archive building, where documents are held. Therefore, it is necessary to stay alert.
Political and/or social risks
| Identified risks | Level of risk |
|---|---|
Armed conflicts | None |
Illegal trafficking of documents | None |
Thefts or robberies | None |
Vandalism | None |
Threatening socio-cultural environment | None |
Lack of support/public policies | None |
There are no political or social risks.
Environment (location) issues
| Identified risks | Level of risk |
|---|---|
Material/storage units | Low |
Furniture | Low |
Room or warehouse | Low |
Building | Low |
Site or neighbourhood | Low |
Area or region, beyond the neighbourhood | Low |
Indicators
| Identified risks | |
|---|---|
Management Plan | Yes |
The Imperial Museum [Museu Imperial] follows the guidelines of the Brazilian Institute of Museums [Instituto Brasileiro de Museus], set out in the Museological Plan. | |
Response Protocol | Yes |
The Imperial Museum [Museu Imperial] has a civil fire brigade and rescuers. An internal protocol was developed and is included in the Museological Plan. | |
Documentary heritage digitization | Yes, partially |
Since 2009 the Imperial Museum [Museu Imperial] has been developing the project DAMI – Programa de Digitalização do Acervo do Museu Imperial [Digitalization of the Collection of the Imperial Museum], which has as main objects digitalizing and giving access to all the institution’s collection on its website. It is a long-term project that aims at the democratization of the access to cultural assets. | |
Documentary heritage availability on the internet | Yes, partially |
The majority of documents are of paper and cloth, integral and well preserved, in spite of the acidity that affects great part of the documentation. The acidity can be seen principally in the newspapers, pamphlets, programmes, homages and invitations, for having been produced with low quality papers. Cuttings from periodicals are glued on white paper. Some of the papers present, in very restricted areas, some loss, either by mechanical means like tears and cuts, with or without the fragment, or by infestation by xylophage insects. They present also some corrosion caused by the ferrogallic ink. There is widespread yellowing and stains, presumably occasioned by migration of acid elements, such as adhesives used in the past, graphite and fungus. some more compact and in a smaller scale stains are caused by bacteria. One of the risk factors, of climate nature, is the humidity that reaches 80%, due to the geographical location, the tropical climate, and the surrounding green area.