L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2026 www.italoamericano.org 14 L'Italo-Americano LA VITA ITALIANA TRADITIONS HISTORY CULTURE F or more than six decades, M i n a h a s o c c u p i e d a r a r e p l a c e i n Italian culture: she is at once a singer, a symbol, a voice recognized by virtually everyone, and a p u b l i c f i g u r e w h o c h o s e , long ago, to step away from public life without ever los- ing relevance. Few artists a n y w h e r e h a v e m a n a g e d that combination. In Italy, simply saying "Mina" has long been enough: no sur- name is needed. B o r n M i n a A n n a Mazzini in 1940 in Busto Arsizio, in Lombardy, she grew up partly in Cremona and came of age in a coun- t r y t h a t w a s c h a n g i n g q u i c k l y a f t e r t h e S e c o n d W o r l d W a r : I t a l y i n t h e 1950s was becoming more urban, more modern, more connected to international trends, and popular music w a s c h a n g i n g w i t h i t . A m e r i c a n r o c k a n d r o l l , jazz, swing, and new styles of performance were begin- ning to influence younger generations: it was in that s p e c i a l a t m o s p h e r e s h e s t e p p e d i n t o , w i t h h e r striking stage presence and unmistakable voice. H e r e a r l i e s t s u c c e s s c a m e a t t h e e n d o f t h e 1 9 5 0 s , w h e n s h e f i r s t recorded under the name Baby Gate, reflecting the e r a ' s f a s c i n a t i o n w i t h American sounds. From the beginning, what made her special was not only vocal power but her performative flexibility: she could sound playful, dramatic, intimate, i r o n i c , m o d e r n , o r p r o - foundl y emotional , often within the same repertoire, in a range that allowed her t o m o v e e a s i l y b e t w e e n musical worlds, at a time w h e n m a n y p e r f o r m e r s were more limited. By the early 1960s, Mina h a d b e c o m e o n e o f t h e d e f i n i n g s t a r s o f I t a l i a n television, then the most influential medium in the country, but her private life placed her at the center of national debate, too. In the early 1960s, her relation- s h i p w i t h a c t o r C o r r a d o Pani, who was still married w h e n t h e y b e c a m e involved, caused controver- sy in what was a much more conservative Italy. Broad- c a s t e r s d i s t a n c e d t h e m - selves for a period, and she w a s e x c l u d e d f r o m s o m e p r o g r a m m i n g , y e t t h e episode also revealed some- thing about Mina's position in Italian society: she was too important and too loved by the public to disappear f o r l o n g . S h e r e t u r n e d stronger than before, and t h e p u b l i c ' s a t t a c h m e n t only deepened. Musically, the 1960s and 1970s were extraordinary decades, during which she r e c o r d e d p r o l i f i c a l l y a n d worked with many of Italy's f i n e s t c o m p o s e r s , a r r a n g e r s , a n d l y r i c i s t s , performing pop, chanson, j a z z - i n f l e c t e d m a t e r i a l , s o u l , a n d s o p h i s t i c a t e d , orchestral songs. She had a gift for taking material that m i g h t h a v e s e e m e d o r d i - nary in another voice and turning it into something incredible through phrasing and emotional intelligence. Among her best-known s o n g s a r e I l C i e l o i n u n a S t a n z a , w r i t t e n b y G i n o Paoli, Se Telefonando, one of the landmarks of Italian p o p c o m p o s i t i o n , w i t h m u s i c b y E n n i o M o r r i - c o n e , P a r o l e P a r o l e , a witty duet with actor Alber- t o L u p o , a n d G r a n d e Grande Grande, a song that later traveled international- ly in various forms. Need- less to say, part of Mina's e n d u r i n g i m p o r t a n c e i n music lies in the technical side of her singing: musi- cians and critics have often p o i n t e d t o t h e c o n t r o l o f her phrasing, the precision o f h e r i n t o n a t i o n , t h e warmth and power of her l o w e r r e g i s t e r , a n d t h e e x p r e s s i v e f r e e d o m w i t h which she delivered every line. Then, something incredi- b l e h a p p e n e d : i n 1 9 7 8 , after a final series of live appearances, Mina with- drew from public per- f o r m a n c e a n d l a r g e l y from public visibility to s e t t l e i n S w i t z e r l a n d , choosing a life away from cameras and concert halls. F o r m a n y a r t i s t s , d i s a p - pearing would have meant d e c l i n e , b u t f o r M i n a , i t b e c a m e p a r t o f h e r v e r y l e g e n d : s h e c o n t i n u e d recording albums, releasing new material regularly, col- l a b o r a t i n g w i t h m a j o r m u s i c i a n s – i n c l u d i n g another iconic performer like Adriano Celentano – and remaining commer- c i a l l y s u c c e s s f u l w h i l e rarely being seen. T h i s d e c i s i o n c h a n g e d the relationship between artist and audience because M i n a b e c a m e , i n s o m e w a y s , e v e n m o r e p r e s e n t through her absence. Ital- ians continued to hear her on the radio, buy records, see her name in stores, and hear her voice in television themes and advertising, but without the usual machin- ery of celebrity exposure; m a g i c a l l y , t h e f o c u s returned to the recordings themselves, to music. O u t s i d e I t a l y , M i n a i s sometimes less known than other European stars of her e r a , w h i c h i s s u r p r i s i n g g i v e n t h e s c a l e o f h e r achievement: she sold mil- lions of records, shaped the s o u n d o f I t a l i a n p o p u l a r music, and maintained cul- t u r a l a u t h o r i t y a c r o s s c h a n g i n g d e c a d e s . A n d don't be surprised if, for m a n y i n t h e m u s i c b u s i - ness, she is still the gold standard against which all f e m a l e v o i c e s s h o u l d b e measured. Certainly, this is one of the key reasons why Mina remains so important today, but there is more: she did not depend on con- stant visibility, and she did not dilute her identity to remain current. She did not need to explain herself end- lessly in public, but allowed h e r w o r k t o c o n t i n u e s p e a k i n g f o r h e r . S h e became the ultimate Diva b y r e f u s i n g a l l t h e t r a p - pings of being a Diva, from exposure to gossip, all the way to mediatic presence; in a media culture built on being seen, Mina remains powerful partly because she c h o s e t h e o p p o s i t e p a t h , a n d i n a m u s i c i n d u s t r y often driven by speed, she built longevity instead. T h i s i s w h y , i n I t a l y , Mina remains simply Mina, and no one is like her. Mina: the singer who stepped away but never disappeared LUCA SIGNORINI Advancing our Legacy: Italian Community Services CASA FUGAZI If you know of any senior of Italian descent in San Francisco needing assistance, please contact: ItalianCS.org | (415) 362-6423 | info@italiancs.com Italian Community Services continues to assist Bay Area Italian-American seniors and their families navigate and manage the resources needed to live healthy, independent and productive lives. Since Shelter-in-Place began in San Francisco, Italian Community Services has delivered over 240 meals, over 900 care packages and made over 2000 phone wellness checks for our seniors.

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