February 4, 2013. (Romereports.com) (-VIDEO ONLY-) The Paul VI Hall filled with the meters of the overture “The Force of Destiny” by
Verdi, and
Beethoven's Third Symphony, also known as Eroica or Heroic.
The
concert, performed by the Mayo Musical Florentino Orchestra, under the direction of the Indian maestro Zubin Mehta, was a gift from the
Italian Embassy to the Holy See to
Benedict XVI and Italian President
Giorgio Napolitano. It marks the 84 anniversary of the
Lateran Pacts, which officially gave the Vatican full sovereignty over its modern day territory.
The accords between Italy and the Holy See came to be defined by the motto “a free Church in a free state."
The overture by Verdi was chosen to celebrate the bicentennial of his birth. The Heroic Symphony was initially dedicated to Napoleon Bonaparte, but it was finally titled “Heroic symphony composed to celebrate the memory of a great man.”
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