Italy has canceled the concert of pianist Alexander Romanovsky, which was scheduled for August 5 in Bologna. Italian Senator Marco Lombardo from the Azione party announced the decision on social media platform X, citing a response from Bologna’s mayor, Matteo Lepore.
Lombardo called the move “appropriate and timely,” stating:
“From Caserta to Bologna, when civil society joins forces with institutions, democracy is protected from foreign interference.”
Azione leader Carlo Calenda said that canceling Romanovsky’s concert in Bologna was the second piece of good news on July 21, after the cancellation of Valery Gergiev’s concert.
“It shows that Italy has antibodies to Putinism,” he added.
Alexander Romanovsky, originally from Ukraine, became an Italian citizen in 2011. In May 2022, he visited occupied Mariupol with violinist Pyotr Lundstrem and performed a Mozart sonata in front of the city’s drama theater, which had been destroyed by Russian forces. As a result, the Royal College of Music in London suspended him from teaching.
Earlier, the administration of the Royal Palace in Caserta canceled a concert conducted by Valery Gergiev—a known supporter of Vladimir Putin—scheduled for July 27 as part of the “Un’Estate da RE” (A King’s Summer) festival.
