Andrea Mirò, Italian musician, author, producer, singer and orchestra director, will add concert director to her list of accomplishments as she holds the title for the 21st Notte della Taranta music festival, Europe's largest traditional music event, to be held on August 25 in Melpignano.
"I'm in it up to my neck; I was preparing my new album when
they invited me," Mirò said.
"I stopped everything and immersed myself in a traditional
repertoire. It will be the most beautiful thing this year, I
already know," she said.
The August 25 concert, which will conclude a 20-city tour in
the Salento area that starts on August 3 with the theme
"landscape", will be broadcast on Rai5.
Mirò said the concert of the Notte della Taranta is a
thoroughly Italian event, with a basis of "contamination"
between an "incredibly dynamic tradition and 'new' genres".
"Every maestro gives his or her contribution. I'll put my
background forward: I come from a classical background, I've
gone through folk, I express myself with rock and songwriting,"
she said.
She said she will sing and play at the concert, and "who
knows, maybe I could even dance", she added, smiling.
Above all, she will lead the Folk Orchestra, bringing
together more than 60 artists (plus a big international start to
be announced on July 24 in Lecce), and the choreography of
Massimiliano Volpini, a close collaborator of star Italian
ballet dancer Roberto Bolle.
"I'll start with the pizzica, in order to explore other
languages, in an immense landscape of emotions," Volpini said,
referring to the traditional dance from the Salento peninsula in
Puglia.
Mirò will be only the second woman to conduct the concert in
its 21 editions.
"We women always have to go through a few more trials. I'm
used to jumping over obstacles," she said.
Another new addition to this year's concert is the debut of
freestyle rap, with the participation of Italian rapper
Clementino.
Saxophone player James Senese and the voice of Enzo
Gragnaniello will tell the story of the meeting between Naples
and the Salento pizzica.
With the violin of Ylian Canizares, concertgoers and viewers
will take a voyage through ancient languages such as the Griko
dialect and Yoruba.
And then there are the poets, singers and dancers of the
Dhoad Gypsties of Rajasthan; the ska-punk of the Salento group
Après La Classe; the trumpet of Frank Nemola, from Vasco Rossi's
band; the harmonica of Davide 'Billa' Brambilla; and the poetry
of Mino De Santis.
Puglia Regional Governor Michele Emiliano said that each
Notte della Taranta is something different.
"Puglia is like that - every time you come back, you discover
something new. It's not like going to a museum, here you are
welcomed, taken in," he said.
Puglia Tourism Councillor Loredana Capone said she's
convinced that culture can "change the future of the world's
south".
She cited the transformation of Bilbao or the European
Capitals of Culture.
Notte della Taranta Foundation President Massimo Manera said
statistics also support this.
"According to a study by Confcommercio, the University of
Lille and the University of L'Aquila, every euro spent on La
Notte brings 4.3 euros back to the area," Manera said.
"In 10 years, that will be 100 million euros. To have an idea
(for comparison), at the Sziget Festival in Budapest, for each
euro spent, one comes back," he said.
Italian Minister for the South Barbara Lezzi said she knows
the Notte della Taranta festival well.
"I am a resident in Melpignano, born in Lecce, and I've
attended the concert several times," Lezzi said.
"It's a unique cultural experiment, that has brought Salento
to the world stage. The Notte isn't just a concert, it's a big
event that could be an economic, cultural, and employment
flywheel, including across a broader period of time. There could
be a series of activities throughout the year, that see the
concert as the conclusive height," she said.
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