21 x 14,8 cm; 208 pp.; ill.

Niccolò Paganini died in Nice on May 27, 1840, after a long illness that had tormented him during his final years. On that same day, the bishop of Nice, Domenico Galvano, forbade his burial in consecrated ground. This unexpected and disconcerting event triggered a strong reaction from the musician's Genoese friends, who did everything they could to ensure Paganini an honorable burial. After several appeals to the Nice and Genoa ecclesiastical courts, plus three separate trials, those requests were finally granted in 1844. The Nice and Genoa bishops, however, vigorously opposed the final ruling; it took years before Paganini's body could be buried in consecrated ground in 1853. Today, his remains rest in the Villetta cemetery, Parma. This book follows step by step the composer's painful post-mortem journey. It contains many documents, most of which are issued here for the first time. These give the reader a chance to fully understand the thick web of interests, not only religious, but also political, lying behind that failed burial.

In 2023, Mariateresa Dellaborra, Roberto Iovino, Nicole Olivieri, and Danilo Prefumo issued Volume II of Paganini's Epistolario (1831-1840) di Paganini (Accademia di Santa Cecilia-Curci).

Mariateresa Dellaborra researches 18th- and 19th-century Italian music. She published for Olschki, ETS, Brepols, L’Epos, LIM, Ut Orpheus, Marsilio, and Suvini Zerboni. She has produced many scholarly editions and is the editor of several series. A member of the National Edition of Paganini's Works and the Paganini Research Center committees, Genoa, she is the coordinator fo the ITMI (Indici della Trattatistica Musicale Italiana) working group (www.itmi.it).

Roberto Iovino, a graduate in Mathematics with a diploma in Choir music and Choir conducting, taught Music history at the Paganini Conservatory, Genoa, which he chaired from 2014 to 2018. A music critic, he leads the Paganini Research Center and is a member of the National Edition of Paganini's Works scientific committee. He also chairs the Artistic Committee of the Cervo Festival and is the author of many scholarly publications and theatrical plays.

Nicole Olivieri, has degrees in Flute and Music Education and is a tenured teacher at a music-oriented high school. She is the coordinator of the Paganini Research Center. She has authored several musicology publications.

Danilo Prefumo has been researching Niccolò Paganini for many years and has written dozens of studies, plus an extensive monograph, Paganini. Le vita, le opere, il suo tempo, published by LIM in 2020, and translated into English. He is a member of the scientific committee of the National Edition of Paganini's Works and of the Paganini Research Center, Genoa.