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18th June 2000 Vincenza
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Sunday 18th June 2000
Another beautiful, sunny day.. We drove to Vincenza through the Monti Berici hills, which I figured would be a short cut. On the map, it looks fairly straight and easy. That is fine, if you ignore the fact that it has "Monti Berici" in bold print across the map where the road runs. So, the road is very narrow, it winds through stunningly beautiful hills and mountains, with pretty villages and many large villas, with vast gardens. Because it is hilly, half the male population of the Veneto, who are practicing for the Tour de France, use these hills for their Saturday and Sunday rides. It took 45 minutes to negotiate our way to the outskirts of Vicenza, but it was worth it. The road comes out of the hills at the Baroque, Basilica di Monte Brico, which stands on the last hill, overlooking the town. The views are fantastic; of the town and the plain to the north, and we arrived as the bells were chiming, and half of Vicenza were either entering or leaving the Sunday morning services, half the tourists in the region were at the lookout, and the bicyclists were weaving through. We stopped for photographs, and then on driving down into town, maybe a kilometer, noticed that the whole length of the path beside the road, is covered by a marble portico, adorned with shrines.
We parked just outside the old town, across one of the loops of the Fiume Retrone, and walked across the bridge into town. We came in through the entrance where the tourist information office is located beside the entrance to the Teatro Olympico. It was extremely fortunate that we went to the tourist office first, because we discovered that there was to be a performance of one of the Brandenberg Concerti (Bach), and several Schoenberg concerti that evening, in the Teatro Olympico. We figured why pay L12,000 to walk through, when for just an extra L13,000, we could see it as Palladio and Scamozzi meant it to be seen, as a working theatre. It first opened, with Oedipus Rex, in 1585, and is the oldest in the world. We bought tickets.
The Eyewitness Travel Guides have many shortcomings, but for the towns where they give you "Street-by-Street" walking maps, they aren't bad. A word of warning, read them with a locally available town map, provided by the tourist information office. As an example, the Eyewitness map for Vicenza is fine in terms of walking you through the highlights of the town, but they have given the wrong location for the Palazzo Valmarana Braga. They place it on the corner of Corso Andrea Palladio and Corso Antonio Fogazzaro, facing the former. It is actualy the second or third building down the latter. Wasted 15 minutes of our time trying to find it. Because Palladio designed almost everything significant in this city, we persevered. The facade of Palazzo Valmarana Braga is worth seeking out. It wasn't completed for another hundred years after Palladios death. There are many sculptured scenes and giant pilasters. The highlights were the Piazza Dei Signori, where there is the Loggia del Capitaniato on one side, and the " Basilica" and the Torre di Piaza (campanile?) on the other side. The "Basilica" is interesting because it was originally the Palazzo della Ragione (the town hall), built in the 15th Century. All that remains of the original structure is the huge copper clad roof, which stands out above the city skyline like the Duomo in Firenze. The foundations began to subside over the next hundred years, so Palladios first public commission was to save the building in 1549. he designed two tiers of colonnades around three sides of the building, decorated with statues of Greek and Roman gods around the roofline. Other highlights were the views from the Ponte San Michele, where you can look down the river at the back of the buildings lining it, with willows and other trees, around the corner, the Casa Pigafetta, which has an interesting and worthwhile facade that is worth seeing for this alone, but is mainly visited because it is the birthplace of Antonio Pigafetta, who circumnavigated the world with Magellann in 1519. Just up the street on the right, unlisted in any of the guidebooks, is the oldest building in the city, a medieval tower that is now apartments. The Duomo was flattened during the war, and only the facade remained. It was particularly plain, and made of chequerboard stones, but Ches really liked it. Finally, there were the shops that line Corso Andrea Palladio, for which you require no limit on your credit card. Sensational men's and women's clothing, but prices to stop you in your tracks.
We returned home to change and return for the evening concert. First big mistake. Don't take a sidewalk table for pre-theatre drinks. L9,000 for a beer, is the most expensive beer I have ever drunk. The theatre is all built out of timber and plaster, and made to look like marble. The stage was designed and built by Scamozzi, after Paladios death. The set is permanent, and represents Thebes. It is sloped backward, and painted in perspective to give the appearance of great depth. The stage itself, is projected forward into the auditorium, and above it are sculpted scenes. The auditorium is made to resemble the marble semi-circular Greek/Roman theatres. All is backed by a wall lined with Greek/Roman statues. Actually, the models for the heads, were all patrons who sponsored the building of the theatre. The bench seats were provided with cushions for the performance. Half the audience were locals, and the rest tourists like us, with the house close to full. The performance of the Brandenberg Concerto #6 was fantastic. The use of the clavichord, to accompany the strings, was wonderful, and there was a vibrancy to the performance that was exhilarating. The first Schoenberg had me concerned, but the Verklarte Nacht produced half a dozen curtain calls and a semi-standing ovation. It was a really special event.
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