Culture Context Florence Fall 2025

These sounds come from a workshop organised by the CRESSON on the occasion of the Winterschool 2021. They were recorded between the 18th and the 28th january 2021 and I designed them in order to do a soundwalk which takes place around the Savonarola square. > This soundwalk is a sonic photography and a composition of how this area sounds during an ordinary january week. > Savonarola is a residential district full of vitality. Out from the touristic tour but very close to the city center. Here life is good and the demand to acquire a property is high. > The crisis of tourism since the emergence of the Covid-19 showed the city center being emptied. Empty of tourists, students but also of inhabitants. But around Savonarola square, people continued to live day after day, always passing through or around it. For sure, there were more activities here than around the famous Duomo. > In particulary, the Savonarola square gives us a pist to understand why this district is loved. I took the example of this square to describe the concept of "open and inclusive city" developped by Richard Sennett in his book « Building and dwelling : Ethics for the city ». > So, we can say that the quality of the place is strong. Because many different activities take place together into it or around it, at different moments of the day and of the year. For example, the square sounds differently when summer's coming because this is the place to have a drink thanks to the little street bar with inexpensive prices and music...

The map includes spots in Florence, or in its immediate surroundings, that are either mentioned in the Dante's Divine Comedy, or that resonate with Dantesque environments and topics such as wilderness, wood, gardens, water, natural/urban barriers.

This is Trattoria Angolo Pitti- a restaurant a short walk across the river. When I came to Florence, I was eager to try all the touristy restaurants I saw advertised on social media, so I made it my mission to do my first month here. Though I enjoyed my meals at these restaurants, nowhere felt special or worth returning to immediately. My friend had invited me to dinner at their new favorite place, which soon became my favorite place. Trattoria Angolo Pitti had great food and an incredible staff, making the place and experience memorable. The staff offered exceptional services and shared stories about places special to them in Florence. They also asked about my travels and my time in Florence, making it a point to build a meaningful connection. This dining experience felt personal in a way that I had not experienced in Florence yet. Trattoria Angolo Pitti represented what many restaurants have lost in the wave of mass tourism and homogenous consumerism: authenticity. Popular dining spots have focused on simply becoming places for tourists to check off their lists, focusing on aesthetics and economic gains rather than building personal connections that give places a unique identity. Visiting Trattoria Angolo Pitti is a refreshing experience in a city where consumerism seems to strip restaurants of a distinct identity and make every restaurant, museum, and site feel the same. The city's soul is diminished in these areas where the primary focus is serving a mass rather than crafting a personalized, unique experience. Businesses prioritize maximizing their profit and status, which can be noted by the fact that many places try to serve as many people as possible, overpricing small portions of food and having quick interactions with customers. In attempting to conform to the global tourist markets, restaurants and other important sites in cities lose character, making them distinct from every other place. It is not that Trattoria Angolo Pitti serves unique food that cannot be found elsewhere, but it caters to an experience tailored to each customer, making the dining experience comfortable and homey. What truly made me feel connected to this place was that it reminded me of my dad's restaurant in Chicago. Connecting with customers was just as important as serving excellent food, even in a city where tourism causes individuals to lose sight of the value of personal attention rather than a homogenous experience. The food at both of these places definitely draws people in, but it is the people who make the experience. You want to return to a place that focuses on every table and handles the needs and satisfaction of each customer differently and with care. In all, having a place that feels personal and comfortable within a new city as a tourist is something special. It was obvious through my interactions with the staff and my observations of their encounters with other customers that Trattoria Angolo Pitti was an establishment driven by a passion to connect with people and elevate their dining experience, contrasting the often impersonal nature at touristy restaurants in Florence. In dining here, I learned that though these touristy places may be the most popular and sought-after, it is often the smaller, less-known places that offer richer experiences. - Katerina Vasquez

This is the Giardino Bardini, which is an Italian Renaissance garden in Florence that overlooks the entire city. I chose this garden because when I went to visit it with my family, we were truly in awe of its breathtaking panoramic view and its rich cultural significance. It's a special garden to me as it reminds me how blessed I am to be studying in a city like Florence, and to be able to experience something so beautiful with my family.

La Voce degli Alberi dedica una passeggiata sonora a Fabio Clauser, il decano delle foreste italiani. Da oggi, passeggiando nel cuore delle foreste Casentinesi gli alberi vi racconteranno la storia dell'uomo che parla agli alberi. A cura di Giovanna Iorio con la collaborazione di Lucio Lazzaruolo (Musiche & Audio), Gianluca Piovesan e Alessandro Bottacci. Partendo da Camaldoli in Toscana passa dall'Eremo e quindi costeggia Sasso Fratino lungo il confine tra le due regioni fino ad arrivare a Campigna in Romagna. Un uomo secolare a tutela di foreste millenarie: Fabio Clauser compie 100 anni Eventi a Arezzo „ Originario del Trentino, ormai da oltre 60 anni vive fortemente legato nel territorio del Parco Nazionale delle Foreste Casentinesi a cavallo tra Toscana e Emilia. Fabio Clauser è stato amministratore delle Foreste casentinesi dal 1955 al 1973. Nel 1959, insieme al professor Mario Pavan, dell’università di Pavia, ha promosso l’istituzione della riserva naturale integrale di Sasso Fratino, la prima in Italia. Dopo aver ottenuto il diploma del Consiglio d'Europa nel 1985 Sasso Fratino, dal 2017, è Patrimonio dell’umanità Unesco. Nato nell' ottobre 1919 in Trentino, Clauser ha percorso tutta la sua vita professionale nell'amministrazione forestale: da allievo dell’Accademia nel 1940, fino alla pensione da vice direttore generale nel 1984. Ha pubblicato, oltre a tantissimi articoli su riviste specializzate, tre libri: "Piantare alberi" nel 2004, insieme alla figlia Marina, "Romanzo forestale" nel 2015 e "La parola agli alberi" nel 2017. Dal 2015 è socio onorario dell’Accademia italiana di scienze forestali.

La voce degli alberi Sound Walk ideata e realizzata da Giovanna Iorio Poesie di Giovanna Iorio da Dieci Nuove Poesie d'amore per un albero (inedite) Lettura italiana di Barbara Marchand Lettura francese di Marilyne Bertoncini Lettura inglese di Charlotte Chadwick-Jones Musica e montaggio di Lucio Lazzaruolo (Notturno Concertante) Immagini di copertina: Voice Portraits di Giovanna Iorio

La voce degli alberi Sound Walk (passeggiata sonora) ideata e realizzata da Giovanna Iorio Poesie di Giovanna Iorio da Dieci Nuove Poesie d'amore per un albero (inedite) Lettura italiana di Barbara Marchand Lettura francese di Marilyne Bertoncini Lettura inglese di Charlotte Chadwick-Jones Musica e montaggio di Lucio Lazzaruolo (Notturno Concertante)