Munier Mandolin Orchestra Loses its Conductor of 17 Years

The mandolin might not be the coolest of instruments by modern-day standards, but in the hands of someone like Cris Ianni it produced beautiful music. Cris began playing the mandolin at age 7 in his native Italy. He became so passionate about the instrument that he would practice for long hours, even skipping meals and other youthful activities to master it.

After the family arrived in the United States, in 1935, he also took up the violin and played with the South Philadelphia High School Orchestra, a renowned aggregation under the direction of Jay Speck.

As a mandolinist, Cris performed widely with the Munier Mandolin & Guitar Orchestra, of which he eventually became director and it's second conductor. The Munier Mandolin & Guitar Orchestra was formed in 1957, under the leadership of Dr. Joseph Tirrachia and was named in honor of the celebrated Neapolitan mandolin virtuoso and composer, Carlo Munier. When Dr. Tirrachia died in 1990, Cris assumed the baton.

"I grew up in a small town in italy," he told Philadelphia Daily News writer Joe Clark in 1997. "There was no amusement of any kind. except playing musical instruments. Practically everybody in town played something." Cris and his son, Joseph, and other musician friends would play at family gatherings and celebrations, including the Italian tradition of serenading the bride on the eve of her wedding day.

"He reveled in carrying on a tradition that was brought with him from Italy, his family said. "Nothing compared to the delight of bringing family and friends together with music, love and laughter. He touched the hearts of many."

One of Cris' proudest moments was his opportunity in 2004 to conduct the 134 piece En Masse Mandolin Orchestra for the Classical Mandolin Society of America in front of his fans and colleagues in his adopted hometown of Philadelphia.

Crisante Ianni, a native of Abruzzi, Italy, who came to the United States as a child and became a prominent banker, an Army veteran of WWII and a man devoted to his family and Italian traditions, died of heart failure on Thanksgiving. He was 84.

Cris is succeeded at the podium by Joseph Todaro and Bob Henry, so the Orchestra Cris loved will continue on into the future.