Manlio Sgalambro

Manlio Sgalambro (Italian pronunciation: [ˈmanljo zɡaˈlambro]; 9 December 1924 – 6 March 2014) was an Italian philosopher and writer, born in Lentini.[1]

Biography

Birth and death are the two uniquely real moments. The rest is dream, interrupted by some insignificant flashes of vigil.
Manlio Sgalambro, Aria di Federico (from Il cavaliere dell'intelletto)

Philosophical production

Sgalambro did not have titles or degrees for business cards: how he become a writer of philosophy – whose books are translated into French, German and Spanish – is a mystery that he was not able to explain.

Beginning In 1945 he worked jointly with the review Prisma (directed by Leonardo Grassi): the first writing is Paralipomeni all'irrazionalismo.

In 1947 he matriculated at the University of Catania:

I did not matriculate into Philosophy because I studied it by myself. I liked penal law and so I chose the faculty of Jurisprudence.[2]
Manlio Sgalambro

From 1959 on along with Sebastiano Addamo, he wrote for the magazine Incidenze (founded by Antonio Corsano). His first article for the journal was Crepuscolo e notte (that has been printed again in 2011). In the intervening period of time, he wrote for the journal Tempo presente (directed by Nicola Chiaromonte and Ignazio Silone).

In 1963, at the age of 39, he got married. The incomes coming from the citruses (heredited from his father) was not enough anymore, so he chose to integrate it by do a thesis for a degree and teaching at school.

In the late 1970s he to organize his thoughts in systematic work. Then at the age of 55, he sent his first book, La morte del sole, to the editor Adelphi:

And it rested there for two years. But since I am done in this way, I did not ask anything. Then my wife received a call. They asked me to go to Milan, to forge contact with the editor.[3]
Manlio Sgalambro

In the following years, with the same editor, he published: Trattato dell'empietà, Anatol, Del pensare breve, Dialogo teologico, Dell'indifferenza in materia di società, La consolazione, Trattato dell'età, De mundo pessimo and La conoscenza del peggio e Del delitto.

In the meanwhile, in the early 1990s, with some friends he established a small editorial activity in Catania: De Martinis. On the inside, Sgalambro managed pamphlets, publishing a pair of works (Dialogo sul comunismo and Contro la musica) and printed some operas by Giulio Cesare Vanini and Julien Benda.

Collaboration with Battiato

In 1993 he encountered Franco Battiato, accidentally, during the presentation of a common friend's poetry book. After few days, Battiato asked him to a meeting to propose to him the libretto for the opus Il cavaliere dell'intelletto about Frederik II of Hohenstaufen:

A year ago I didn't know him. Since then we have been worked together. He says to be just a philosopher, but according to me he is a talent that stimulates and enriches me. It seems impossible to me, today, returning to write the lyrics for my things.[4]

From 1994 until his death he collaborated on almost everyone of Franco Battiato's projects. For him he wrote:

Starting in 1998 he penned song lyrics for Patty Pravo (Emma), Fiorella Mannoia (Il movimento del dare), Carmen Consoli (Marie ti amiamo) and Milva (Non conosco nessun Patrizio).

In 2000 he published the single La mer, containing the cover of the famous song by Charles Trenet.

In 2001 he published the album Fun club, produced by Franco Battiato and Saro Cosentino, containing evergreen songs like La vie en rose (by Édith Piaf) and Moon river (by Henry Mancini), but even the ironic Me gustas tú (by Manu Chao).

In 2007 hen lent his voice to the DC-9 airliner of the Italian airline Itavia in Pippo Pollina's opera Ultimo volo about the infamous Ustica disaster.

In 2009 he published the single La canzone della galassia, containing the cover of The galaxy song (taken from Monty Python's The meaning of life), sung with the Sardinian-English group Mab.

Bibliography

Discography

Album

Singoli

Videography

Videoclips

Collaborations

Literature

Music

Album

Singles

Songs

Cinema

Movies

Documentaries

Videos

Theater

Television

Curiosities

Music

Ταυτο τενι ζων και τεθνηκος και εγρηγορος και καθευδον και νεον και γηραιον ταδε γαρ μεταπεσοντα εκεινα εστι κακεινα παλιν ταυτα.
Heraclitus, Fragments
I invite you to the voyage in the land that is like you. The misty sunlights of those cloudy skies have for my spirit the charm of your treacherous eyes, shining brightly. There all is order and beauty, luxury, peace, and pleasure; the world falls asleep in a warm glow of light; see on the canals those vessels sleeping: their mood is adventurous to satisfy your slightest desires.
If, in speaking of my points, I think of some system of things, e.g., the system: love, law, chimney-sweep… and then assume all my axioms as relations between these things, then my propositions, e.g., Pythagoras' theorem, are also valid for these things.
David Hilbert, Letter to Frege of 29 December 1899

Since 1996 he participates in almost every Franco Battiato's tours:

Bacterium flourescens liquefaciens, Bacterium histolyticum, Bacterium mesentericum, Bacterium sporagenes, Bacterium putrificus…
Manlio Sgalambro, Canzone chimica

Cinema

Theater

References

  1. Silenzi, Andrea (6 March 2014). "È morto Manlio Sgalambro, filosofo, scrittore e poeta. Per anni è stato il coautore di Battiato" (in Italian). La Repubblica. Retrieved 6 March 2014.
  2. Mariacatena De Leo & Luigi Ingaliso, Nell'antro del filosofo: dialogo con Manlio Sgalambro (Prova d'autore, 2002).
  3. Giorgio Calcagno, Sgalambro: il filosofo è uno spione (from La stampa of August 28, 1996).
  4. Liliana Madeo, Battiato: note per un filosofo (from La stampa of September 19, 1994).

External links

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