Turin's San Giovanni Day & Lucca Marching Band Festival - Italy 2010

March in front of tens of thousands of Italians and international visitors as Turin celebrates San Giovanni Day, Patron of Turin and as Lucca holds its International Festival of Marching Bands - June 2010

TURIN

Italy is the cradle of so much magnificent music and culture. Everybody deserves a chance to perform there at least once.

Turin is one of Italy’s greatest cities of the North. From the late 17th century Turin was transformed into one of the leading capitals of Baroque art. Magnificent Royal Residences and imposing church domes bear witness to the greatness of the architects of the time. In 1861 Turin became the first capital city of the country and the first Subalpine Parliament is still intact in the Palazzo Carignano.

Turin conserves one of the most important items for the Christian religion, the Holy Shroud, or sheet that is thought to have been wound around the body of Christ. The city boasts ancient plazas and squares, a stunning river and 18 kilometers of beautiful arcades criss-crossing the city centre encouraging the visitor to take in the windows of the many designer fashion and Italian boutiques.

This breathtaking city invites you to celebrate with it on its special day celebrated every year on June 23.

LUCCA

Lucca was established as a Roman colony in 180 BC. It became the second largest Italian city state (after Venice) with a republican constitution allowing it to remain independent over the centuries. In 1805, Lucca was taken over by Napoleon, who put his sister Elisa Bonaparte Baciocchi in charge as “Queen of Etruria”. Lucca is famous for being perhaps the largest Italian city with its medieval city wall still entirely intact (though the city has expanded well past the original wall boundaries).The arts flourished after the 12th century. Lucchese sculpture reached its zenith in the 15th century with Matteo Civitali, whose fine works adorn the cathedral. Lucca is the birthplace of composers Giacomo Puccini, Francesco Geminiani, Gioseffo Guami, Luigi Boccherini, and Alfredo Catalani. Today it is host to international festivals including the Lucca Summer Festival which attracts international artists and the Lucca Comics and Games festival, Italy’s largest festival for comics.