Cultural districts and the challenge of authenticity: the case of Piedmont, Italy

Despite the globalizing nature of contemporary cultural artefacts, in many cases creativity seems to be still very much grounded in local geographic, social and economic contexts. In particular, many authors have recently highlighted the increasing relevance of local cultural districts. This article tries to investigate how and why certain public policies could be more effective in developing an area into a cultural district. In doing so, we will analyse the case of Piedmont's music district, particularly focusing on the role of public policies in its development, and interpreting the evidences through the theoretical perspective of authenticity.