Almost two hundred thousand people expected for the largest popular music concert in Europe in the name – this year – of the peace and brotherhood of peoples in this dramatic moment characterized by numerous wars, from Ukraine to Gaza to many other forgotten conflicts. Not surprisingly, it is Under the same sky The theme of Concertone of the Night of the Taranta scheduled Saturday 23 August in Melpignano (Lecce) Starting from 9.20 pm (and live on Rai 3, Rai Italia, Rai Radio 2 and Raiplay) in the square of the former convent of the Augustinian fathers, directed by the master concertator David Krakauer with the choreography of Fredy Franzutti.
It is the twenty -eighth edition of one of the most anticipated events of the Italian summer, a collective celebration of the pizzica and popular culture of Salento reread in a contemporary key, in dialogue with the cultures and musical traditions of the world.
“The night of the Taranta,” he explained in the presentation press conference Massimo Braypresident of the La Notte della Taranta Foundation that organizes the event with the support of the Puglia region And Pugliapromotion and in collaboration with The Union of Municipalities of the Salento Grecìa el ‘Diego Carpitella Institute«It is and must remain a party: a feast of joy, peace, coexistence. The title chosen this year, under the same sky, speaks alone: culture unites, creates bridges, never divides. He knows no enemies, he has nothing to do with wars and conflicts, but lays the foundations of civil coexistence. Already with the itinerant festival we have launched important signals: we have always tried to combine tradition with the ability to innovate, and it will take place in the concert. It is my first year at the helm of this path: I do not look at the past except to recognize with gratitude the great effort of those who wanted this manifestation and those who studying our traditions has placed their foundations. My thanks go to them, together with those who still accompany us today in this great collective enterprise ».
Bray recalled that “in a difficult period like what we are experiencing, the great organizational machine of the Taranta night demonstrates the extraordinary skills and professionalism present in our territory, which must be enhanced. My hope is that culture can become more and more an opportunity for stable work for many people who have chosen to dedicate their lives. A special thanks, as well as to the masters Krakauer and Franzutti, goes to me to the popular orchestra of La Notte della Taranta, which has once again shown not only its very high artistic level, but also the profound link with this event. For the constituent fathers, “he underlined,” culture represented the highest form of education for citizens of the future. Then there was no market idea linked to cultural heritage: today the reality is different, but this must not move from our task. We have to do our job well, contribute to the formation of citizens, offer messages of peace and hope. And also to worry about ensuring projects like this important investments, as we can do thanks to the support of the institutions and beyond ».
Among the artists protagonists of this edition, alongside the popular orchestra on the night of the Taranta and the Ballet Ballet of the Night of the Taranta, there will be as special guests: Giuliano Sangiorgi which will sing two traditional songs Lu rusciu de lu mare And Quannu you are the face of the Matina. His performance will be preceded by an unpublished video by Lu Prigalluru, dialectal song by the Salento singer, shot by Edoardo Winspeare in the Lecce countryside with the participation of Nicoletta Manni and Timofej AndrijashenkoÉtoile and the first dancer of the Teatro alla Scala in Milan, to raise awareness of the drama of the Xylella who deserted the Salento landscape killing millions of olive trees; The Salento Grecanic Canzonierewhich celebrates 50 years of an exceptional artistic affair, will play Pizzica criminalized And Lu justacofane; Antonio Castrignanò will interpret Caddhipulin and Funtana Gitana air; Ermal Meta Among the most loved and refined songwriter on the Italian scene he will sing Mediterranean from his latest album Good luck And Lulle lulle in Arbëreshe language; TAREyoung and powerful Italian voice of Palestinian origin who blends R&B sounds with melodies of his origin of origin, will be the interpreter of Araba Fenice; The revelation artist of the Italian Nu-Soul Serena Brancale will be present with Anema and core And To the acque, to the Acquea pizzica of the Bari tradition; Septemberborn in 2001 and winner in Sanremo of the critics prize “Mia Martini”, will sing Vertebrae. In the end, Anna Castigliawhose freshness outside of any scheme has now become a distinctive trait, will propose a poignant Salento love song, Beddha sleeps us.
To direct this edition of the Concertone is the concert master David Krakauer, World reference figure for the clarinet in the fields of jazz and the classic and lover of ancient music Klezmer, who helped rediscover and enhance by making it encounter with contemporary sounds. “The pizzica is an extremely direct, visceral, authentic musical style,” explained Krakauer, “and I believe that listening to the old recording of the Klezmer of the 1920s can be grasped many similarities with the materials collected in Salento by Alan Lomax and Diego Carpitella in the 1950s from which I started: they are all immediate, vibrant, pure emotions. For me it is essential that the public, from the first listening, recognizes the pizzica, recognizes the music of Southern Italy, of Salento. It must not seem like a collage or an imitation, But the substance of that tradition must clearly emerge, even if enriched by something new, of different ». With Maestro Krakauer they will be on the stage Kathleen Tagg, Sarahmk and Yoshie Frutchter, his usual collaborators.
The choreography of the show are signed by the Master Fredy Franzutti, which will interpret the Salento tradition in a contemporary key, giving shape to an identity synthesis capable of preserving, also in the creative reworking, the archaic and ritual value of the pizzica. “The project is to rework the visual connotations of the pizzica and the phenomenon of which it is an expression, maintaining the memory of the topic and drawing on the most authoritative anthropological studies,” explained Franzutti, “”The goal is to make that contemporary image through a temporal transposition, respecting its historical value. It starts from a specific competence, which I don’t know if it is a more, but it is still a variant, it is new. Sometimes the transposition has made this fantastic world of Taranta in the world travel. This time we will change the languages but not the specific contents of what we mean. Memories, emotions, the dreams of the past are the new contaminations of this year ».
For this edition of the Concertone, the scenography takes shape starting from original designs of Pietro Ruffo, Translated into visual elements that will accompany music and dance. Ruffo is one of the most recognizable Italian artists on the international scene, capable of intertwining meticulous design, scientific research and political reflection in works that question the relationship between man and nature. For this edition of the event, Ruffo imagined A procession of boys, designed one by one in pen, each caught in its individuality, in its feelings, desires, ambitions. Together they make up an ideal dancing manifestation, symbol of joy, roots and hope. Each starts from a different country in Salento, to find themselves in Melpignano in a collective message of peace and change.
For the president of the Puglia Region, Michele Emiliano The night of the Taranta “is a living cultural heritage, a collective party of the Apulian identity that is renewed every year, is enriched and told to the world through music, dance, beauty. This year will be a special edition for me, the last as president of the region, and to note the extraordinary, national and international attention, which continues to surround the concert of Melpignano is a reason for emotion and gratitude for me “.
The conduct of the live television on Rai 3 is entrusted to Ema stokholma And the direction is of Stefano Mignucci. Rai Italia will bring the event to North America, South America, Africa, Asia and Australia through its four international channels, offering millions of spectators in the world the emotion of a unique event.
The Prime Time Entertainment Deputy Deputy Entertainment Deputy Deputy Deputy Deputy Deputy Deputy Conference Giovanni Anversa: «The title of this edition, Under the same sky, recalls universal values. I thank President Massimo Bray, who in recent years has been able to return deep meanings to the concert. The night of the Taranta is primarily celebration of cultural mixing: every year different assets meet and merge, enriching and making us feel part of something bigger. For us at Rai it also has a special meaning: the public service is always present in the great events of the live show. From May 1st in Rome to Melpignano, we always have, with our ability to bring the popular dimension of these events to the world of Italians and in the world. Popular is a word that must be re -evaluated as a great heritage: it means sharing, participation, community. The night of the Taranta is not a competition, but a collective rite that unites, amuses and makes you think, a great cultural and memory event that is renewed and inspires new generations every year “.
“In the last ten years,” he said Aldo Patruno, Director of the Culture and Tourism Department of Puglia Region, «We did the leading event of the Night of Taranta, not only of the regional schedule, but of the national and international one. It is difficult to find around – in Italy and abroad – events with the numbers of the concert which, with the direct Rai and the diffusion in the world with Rai Italia, this year has found its definitive consecration. I would like to thank all those who have made this incredible success over the years, starting from its undisputed protagonists: the artists of the popular orchestra and the body of the Night of the Taranta, wonderful professionals of the live show with the roots firmly sunk in Salento, Puglia, Mediterranean, and wings passionately deployed towards the whole world. And towards a future in which the common roots and popular cultures help to find the conditions for a civil and peaceful coexistence among peoples, in the awareness of being all ‘under the same sky’ “.
