The first volume of "Il mio giornale" by G. A. Rossi was written from 1863 to 1865 and published for the first time in 1903. Rossi introduces us to his life as of a little boy, he describes his decision to migrate in America and the little village in which he was born (Brienza), the studies at Conservatorio San Pietro a Majella in Naples, the audition that Giuseppe Verdi grnted to him (being fascinated by his talent), the long journey to Marseille by boat and, finally, his wandering in France, where he lived as a wonderer-musician, experimenting the life of "viggianesi" (the harp players who travelled from the little village in Basilicata),
reporting for one of the first times their harsh conditions of life and exploitation.