L'Italo-Americano

L'Italo-Americano THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020 www.italoamericano.org 4 FRANCESCA BEZZONE NEWS & FEATURES TOP STORIES PEOPLE EVENTS S a y z a m p o g n a and bucolic Chri- stmas images of traditionally dres- s e d s h e p h e r d s walking in a snowy country- side or through the heart of beautiful, rural villages come to mind. In truth, zampogne — pipe instruments typical of central Italy and remini- scent, in shape and looks, of their more famous Scottish cousin, the Great Highland bagpipe — are more than a Christmas prop. First of all, they have a long history, if it's true that they were in use already in Imperial Rome and that even Nero used to play them. There are even legends saying that Julius Caesar managed to vanqui- sh the Britons by scaring them with the sound of zam- pogne. M o s t i m p o r t a n t t h a n anything else, though, zam- pogne embody a meaningful part of Italy's heritage, espe- cially in Molise and in the quaint village of Scapoli, Italy's capital of zampognari and zampogne makers. And it is, indeed, to Scapoli we ideally fly today, to meet and chat with Fabio Ricci, a z a m p o g n e m a k e r a n d player, who told L'Italo- A m e r i c a n o a b o u t t h e beauty of an instrument cha- racterized by great technical a n d m u s i c a l c o m p l e x i t y , which isn't easy neither to make, nor to play, but that represents an immense cul- tural and historical patri- mony for his region and, in fact, for Italy as a whole. Fabio and his story well represent the importance of zampogne in the context of Molise's tradition, where they are not simply a musical instrument, but a true signi- fier of local heritage: "I come from a family of zampo- gnari, both makers and musicians, " he tells us. "My f a t h e r i s a m a k e r a n d a p l a y e r o f z a m p o g n e . M y grandparents used to play, too. So, I can really say I was born and bred a zampogna- ro. I have fond memories of my grandparents playing and my childhood is filled w i t h i m a g e s o f m y o w n father playing and making zampogne. He is still a pro- fessional maker and he is the one who led me on this path. He still helps me today." Many people think that zampogne and Scottish bagpipes are the same, but this is not true. In fact, they are fairly different. We asked Fabio why: "The differences between these two instru- ments are technical: zampo- gne have two melodic chan- ters and one drone, which makes a fixed note. The two chanters are called manca and ritta. The manca produ- ces the bass note, while the ritta does the 'canto,' the melodic line. Scottish bagpi- pes, on the other hand, have only one chanter, but three drones, each of them making a specific fixed note. " Zampogne are an instru- ment deeply associated with rural culture and, for a l o n g t i m e , t h i s w a s t h e i r Achilles' heel as "they were considered a lesser instru- ment because of their con- nection with the pastoral context. For this reason, they w e r e v i e w e d a s i n f e r i o r , w h e n c o m p a r e d t o o t h e r musical instruments," Fabio e x p l a i n s . L u c k i l y , t h i n g s have changed and zampogne t o d a y h a v e g a i n e d t h e respect they deserve: "They evolved a lot in the past decades, also because new n o t e s a n d r e g i s t e r s h a v e been added. Today, they are no longer considered only and exclusively a folkloristic instrument. Of course, they still do have a huge role in traditional music, but there are more and more musi- cians from conservatorio (music school in Italy) who l e a r n h o w t o p l a y t h e m . Zampogne went from being a relatively simple instru- ment that could play only a handful of notes, to a much more complete — and com- plex — one." While technical changes and evolution mean they can be used more eclec- tically today, the connection between z a m p o g n e and Fabio Ricci at work in his atelier (Photo courtesy of Fabio Ricci) Continued to page 6 Between tradition and evolution: Fabio Ricci and the world of zampogne

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