Danza dei coltelli, Torrepaduli and San Rocco

 The night of the 15^th August in Torrepaduli, around the sanctuary of San Rocco, people dance a unique kind of pizzica, the so-called “pizzica scherma”.

The dance carries on all the night long till the sunrise of the new day.

I had never seen it before.

In addition, Erika, my sister, fond of folk dance, strongly wished to go there.

How I could let her down?

Therefore, we leave at 8.30 pm of the 15^th (Ferragosto) in order to be there at around 10 pm.

Torrepaduli is a small village within the Municipality of Ruffano, around 60 km south of Lecce. 

Once arrived, we find a small area where to park the car.

We walk 10 minutes before reaching the main plaza.

Bright colourful lights enrich the atmosphere.

A band plays music with no interruption.

I’m so surprised when I hear the band playing Rino Gaetano, a very popular singer who died around 30 years ago.

When he was alive, he was famous, but not at all trendy as he is today.

The phenomenon of not appreciating properly its best sons when alive, happens quite often in Italy.

It seems that the country has to digest and assimilate them before paying the tribute that they deserve.

So after a break in the main plaza, we walk towards the sanctuary of San Rocco.

I see so many families outdoor, sat on their chairs, talking each other.

Sometime, they take a glance at foreigners who seem having taken their village just for one night, though.

As documented by Ermanno Inguscio with his book “La pizzica scherma di Torrepaduli. San Rocco: la festa, il mito, il Santuario” (Lupo Editore, 2007), few Francescani in the Middle-Age have built up the chapel dedicated to San Rocco.

San Rocco was born and raised in Montpelier (France).

He belonged to the rich bourgeoisie.

Like San Francesco, he divests of everything he owns to become pilgrim.

San Rocco has always been considered a miracolous Saint.

Ever since people has moved to the sanctuary of Torrepaduli to ask San Rocco help and recovery.

Under such circumstances, pizzica scherma practised mainly by gypsy men (Rom), became metaphor of fight between good vs evil.

Yesterday, Erika was expecting to catch up with some friends of her coming from Fermo (Marche).

Pizzica and tarantella is quickly spreading over the rest of the country.

Erika and I have danced, of course.

Dancing pizzica make you feeling relieved. It’s incredible how therapeutic it is.

It’s 3.30 in the morning.

I begin to yawn.

“Erika, would you mind if we go home? I’ve gotta tired”

“Yeah sure bro. let’s go home” she replies.

I love my sister.

After having driven for 1 hour, we arrive at home at 5 am.

Erika and I exchange a quick “good night”.

After a bunch of seconds I start snoring.

Taranta power rocks S. Pietro Vernotico

San Pietro Vernotico is a small town located between Lecce and Brindisi.


















I went there yesterday because the local public library "Giuseppe Melli" had arranged an event dedicated to the folk music (Incontro con la musica popolare)

I was astonished by seeing the parterre of the theater almost full.

Around 300 people were admiring the dancers of pizzica, led by Ramona Visconti.

The local mayor, Pasquale Rizzo, is invited on stage. He says: "I encourage all the citizens to invest on culture. The community has to believe in this project in order to let it comes true.".

Great vision, Sir Rizzo.

Then, it is the round of the folk band Santu Pietru cu tutte le chiai, active since the '70ies.

Folk music is an immense resource for the South of Italy.

Unfortunately, this immaterial treasury begun to languish since the '50ies, the years in which Italy went crazy with consumerism and industrialization.

Pier Paolo Pasolini had desperately warned the Italians of the cultural genocide which was just occurring.

The thousand-year old peasant civilization replaced by the consumerism.

It was not a great deal.







Currently, folk music is alive more than ever. It is getting popular and popular among the youngest generation.

Pizzica and tarantella are for Italy what flamenco is for Spain.

Now, It is the round of Eugenio Bennato.








Once on stage, Eugenio talks about his passion for folk music.

He recalls his Apulian maestros such as Cantori di Carpino and Matteo Salvatore.

Additionally, Eugenio Bennato pays homage to Domenico Modugno: "Modugno had reinvented the folk music".









After having said that, he starts singing a Modugno's song, Malarazza, a fantastic Sicilian song.






All the dancers surround Eugenio, like embracing him.
















I have the feeling that Eugenio is very much moved by the warm welcome of San Pietro Vernotico.









Eugenio ends up his concert not before having sung Questione meridionale, Brigante se more and finally Mediterraneo.

long life to you Eugenio Bennato!

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An Englishman at "La Notte della Taranta"

It is less than one month since we went to Melpignano, south of Lecce.

Melpignano is located in an area of the Lecce province called Grecia Salentina.

People there speak Griko, a variant of Greek.

We went there the 23^rd of August to attend the latest night of the itinerant festival La Notte della Taranta.

La Notte della Taranta is one of greatest folk festival in Europe.

The music played there is pizzica, which has Greek influence.

Aaron is from Bristol, in the UK.

He came to Brindisi, south of Apulia, in July 2013 to work.

He loves music, he likes very much music festival.

Last year I promised him: “I will take you to Melpignano at La Notte della Taranta, an amazing folk festival.”.

Mervyn, a funny friend of ours from London joined us.

The 23^rd of August 2013 we were in Melpignano.

I still remember their faces when they saw the huge crowd under the stage, filling the entire square.

Almost 30.000 people dancing and singing.

I consider it a bath of energy, pure energy.

Mervyn was supposed to come this year as well. Unfortunately, he could not make it.

 So Aaron and I went there again this year, to celebrate what seems to me a therapeutic rite.

Aaron, I, Lucia and her friends from Milan have been this year at La Notte della Taranta.

I asked Aaron:“Why do you like this music festival”. He replied: “because it is so trivial”.

Aaron has been dancing the entire night. He has even bought a tamburello.

Then, at the end of the night he comes to me and says: “do you know why I really like this festival?

Because it makes me think that I have to let it go” I have never understood very well what he meant.

But I guess he meant something personal, something which belongs to his own story.

Aaron will go back to UK soon.

His life experience in Apulia has almost come to an end.

I wish you all the best, dude.

I'm sure that I will see you next year in August, of course at Notte della Taranta.

Lecce, capital of Apulian Baroque

Lecce is one of the Apulian cities which tourists seem to be fond of.

Yesterday, I went to Lecce at Notte della Taranta, a folk music itinerant festival.

However, on the 23^rd of August, the latest, huge concert of Notte della Taranta festival will be held in Melpignano, close to Lecce.

Notte della Taranta is one of the most popular folk music concerts in Europe.

Every year, the concert in Melpignano attracts almost 50.000 people.

It is a joyful party, where people free their spirit by dancing the Pizzica, a faster version of tarantella.

So, let’s come back to Lecce.

Lecce is a magnificent city, a candidate to be European capital of culture 2019.

It is located in Salento, area which encompasses the province of Lecce, Brindisi and partially Taranto.

The Baroque in Lecce is joyful.

Baroque, influenced by the Spanish Plateresque style, took place between the 16^th and 17^th century, after the battle of Lepanto.

The battle of Lepanto sanctions the end of the Ottoman threat to Europe.

The local upper class, in order to show its status, financed the constructions of new buildings and churches. 

Additionally, buildings already existing, were renewed with Baroque motifs.

The workforce was directed by two great local architects: Giuseppe Zimbalo and Giuseppe Cino.

One additional peculiarity of the local Baroque is due to pietra leccese, the local stone.

The pietra leccese  is easy to work with.

An additional peculiarity is its warm color.

The film industry has played a key role to the success of Salento, of which Lecce is the main city.  

Edoardo Winspeare is the filmmaker of movies set in Salento like pizzicata, Sangue vivo, il miracolo and Galantuomini.

These movies portray a society with a strong connection between the past and the present.

The soundtruck of his movies is obviously the pizzica.

Pizzica, which will be celebrated at Notte della Taranta in Melpignano on the 23^rd of August.

Let’s meet up there, then.

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Galatina: the hearth of tarantismo

The 29th of June 2014, I went to Galatina for the celebration of St. Peter and Paul.

According to the tradition, those who were bitten by the tarantula used to go to the St. Paul's chapel in Galatina.

The therapeutic band was there waiting for them.

As soon the music begun to be played, the pizzicati (bitten), mostly women, started jumping, running, dancing, and eventually, collapsed on the ground.

Everything occurred under the supervision of the two miraculous Saints.

The goal was that the poison inoculated by the tarantula would have been got rid of by a very intense sweating.









An old man whom I met in Galatina, said: "the pizzicati were brought to the chapel by horse-car."

He adds: "this event was very popular till the 80s.

Then, with the fading of rural culture, women and men abandoned this custom.".

Over the last years, the Municipality of Galatina supported by the local club Unesco, hold a pantomime to recall the tradition.

Let us say that the pizzica, a therapeutic folk music has a hysterical rhythm.

Pizzica is part of that big family which goes under the name of tarantella.

Tarantella is a key element of the culture of Southern Italy.

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