Centre de musique romantique française

The Centre de musique romantique française ("centre for French Romantic music") is a French-administered cultural institution, research centre and concert hall, in Venice, in north-eastern Italy. It is housed in the Palazzetto Bru Zane, an annex to the Palazzo Zane Collalto [it], on the Rio Marin [fr] in the sestiere of San Polo. The centre opened in October 2009.^[1] It is funded by the Fondation Bru, which also bought, restored and renamed the Casino Zane.^[2] The centre uses the name Palazzetto Bru Zane − Centre de musique romantique française.

The garden and the entrance to the palazzetto Bru Zane

The Palazzetto

In 1695, Marino Zane (1639–1709) commissioned the construction of a library (no longer extant) and a casino ("small house") next to the Zane family palace, the Palazzo Zane Collalto [it].^[3] This Casino was to house his collection of books and paintings, and to serve as a venue for art, music, and amusement. The architect Antonio Gaspari was responsible for the interior decoration.^[4] Palazzo Zane later passed to the Venier family, and in about 1784 was sold to the Collalto.^[5]

In 2006 the Fondation Bru bought the Casino from Dominic Habsburg-Lothringen for eight million euros, and then spent more than four million more on restoring it.^[6][7] The building now holds offices, studios, a library, and the original concert hall, which now holds an Erard piano from 1902.^[6] The frescoes in the salon and on the grand staircase, now attributed to Sebastiano Ricci, were also restored.^[8]

Activities

The centre has a staff of fifteen,^[7] and an annual budget of three million euros.^[9] It organises concerts, opera performances, and festivals both in Venice and elsewhere.^{[9][10][6][11]} It also organises musicological conferences^[12] and publishes books, sheet music,^[13] and musical recordings, either independently or in co-operation with more than 40 labels.^[14] It operates an internet radio station, Bru Zane Classical Radio, which broadcasts only French Romantic music.^[15]