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Raffaela Gabriella Rizzo An intangible cultural heritage asset

As can be seen from Table 1 and in the descriptions • Giuseppe Guarneri fiulius Andreæ (1666–1740) –
on the websites of the respective institutions, training the “Quarestani” violin, 1689
in violin making and music education can be carried • Antonio Stradivari (circa 1644–1737) – the
out here at any level one wishes. Many initiatives orig- “Stauffer – ex Cristiani” cello, 1700
inate in institutional establishments but involve the • Antonio Stradivari (circa 1644–1737) – the “Il Cre-
whole city in close collaboration. As regards the Isti- monese” violin, 1715
tuto “C. Monteverdi”/Conservatory, there is the Mon- • Antonio Stradivari (circa 1644–1737) – the “Vesu-
teverdi Festival, a top-quality event focusing on the vius” violin, 1727
music of the two Monteverdi brothers (Claudio, Cre-
mona 1567 – Venezia, 1643 and Giulio, Cremona 1573 • Giuseppe Guarneri “del Gesù” (1698–1744) – the
– Salò, 1630) and other outstanding coeval composers. “Stauffer” violin, 1734 (Museo del Violino, n.d.).
The festival involves – apart from the Conservatory’s Mention the public institutions, the City Gov-
Orchestra Monteverdi – well-established national and ernment’s Culture Department takes initiatives re-
international orchestras, musicians, and students of garding the art of violin making: first, it was one of
the Conservatory itself, along with theatrical and ar- the signatories of the proposal for the recognition of
tistic inserts. During the festival, workshops are held ICH status; in 2021, it constituted the UNESCO Office,
for instrumental and vocal groups. These events are and it is notably involved in all the main events. Last
also publicised on social media. Part of the Festival year, with the Teatro Ponchielli (which has an annual
also takes place in the Giovanni Arvedi Auditorium of programme), the Museo del Violino, the Conservato-
the Museo del Violino, where this year, Maestro Jordi ry and the University’s Department of Musicology, it
Savall played instruments from the sixteenth century. launched the first edition of the Festa del Violino.
The Violin Museum works closely with all the We close this brief description of the district with
entities in the district and, in some aspects, is func- two bodies always present when businesses are being
tional for them (Lucarno, 2020). It also conducts promoted and initiatives to be hosted: the Cremona
international collaborations and relationships with Chamber of Commerce and the Cremona Fair (Cre-
the proprietors of the “Friends of Stradivari” instru- monaFiere s.p.a.). For the former and reflections re-
ments, which form part of the collection exhibited in garding this paper’s subject, please see Fulvia Caruso:
a particular room in the Museum. The Museum offers La Camera di Commercio di Cremona e la liuteria
a tour through ten rooms, where one can first learn classica Cremonese (2017). Regarding the latter, atten-
(using multimedia techniques) about the process of tion is due to the annual Cremona musica Internation-
constructing a violin and subsequently admire the ex- al exhibitions and festivals. Every type of top-quality
quisite instruments on show, played by top-class mu- musical instrument and event fills the spaces and the
sicians on special occasions and at the short weekly calendar of the fair during the festival.
concerts. In the fifth room – referred to as “The Treas-
ure Chamber” – one can admire instruments by: Awareness of the Actors Regarding Cremona’s
Violin-making ICH
• Andrea Amati (circa 1505–1577) – the “Carlo IX” The first part of the question asked by the author re-
violin, circa1566 garded an understanding of the extent to which the
• Girolamo Amati (circa 548–1630) – the “Stauffer” actors involved in various ways in Cremona’s Violin
viola, 1615 Making District are aware of the value of the ICH ele-
• Nicolò Amati (1596–1684) – the “Hämmerle” vio- ment that they create, produce, use, or communicate,
lin, circa1658 and which they should highlight and promote to a
• Antonio Stradivari (circa 1644–1737) – the “Clis- highly varied public. Emblematic in this sense is the
bee” violin, 1669 sign that most luthiers attach to the windows of their

58 | Proceedings of the 7th UNESCO UNITWIN Conference