L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, AUGUST 14, 2014 www.italoamericano.com L'Italo-Americano 3 "La notte della Taranta" music festival begins in Salento has enjoyed tremendous growth in size, audience and interna- tional prestige and has explored the fusion of Salento's folk music with other types of music, such as rock, jazz, or classical music. Every year the festival culmi- nates in the "Final Concertone di Melpignano" (Lecce), a concert attended by an average of 120,000 spectators. The night is made unique by inviting a "Maestro Concertatore", an orchestra leader, to arrange and interpret classics from the local musical tradition, directing a group of nearly thirty musicians from Salento, together with exceptional guests from Italy and abroad. Some of the "Maestri Concertatori" who have contributed to the impressive growth of the "La Notte della Taranta" include Daniele Sepe (1998), Piero Milesi (1999 e 2001), Joe Zawinul (2000), Vittorio Cosma (2002), Stewart Copeland (2003), Ambrogio Sparagna (2004, 2005, 2006), Mauro Pagani (2007, 2008, 2009), Ludovico Einaudi (2010, 2011), Goran Bregovic (2012), and Giovanni Sollima (2013). Among the many famous musi- cians who participated to the festival there are Franco Battiato, Gianna Nannini, Raiz, Lucio Dalla, and Carmen Consoli. The Taranta, a traditional dance that is part of the larger family of the so called Tarantella, and characterized by a fast upbeat tempo dance accompanied by tambourines, finds its roots in the ancient Greek myths. According to these, Tarantism was a ritual where victims who had col- lapsed or were convulsing would begin to dance with appropriate music and be revived as if a tarantula spider, the Mediterranean black widow, had bitten them. The city of Taranto was named after the tarantula, whose bite was popularly believed to by highly poisonous and to lead to the hysterical condition of Tarantism, later called Tarantella. The legend says that someone who had supposedly been bitten by a tarantula had to dance to an upbeat tempo to sweat the poison out. Old documents found in the Continued from page 1 Rome would not have been the same "Eternal City" or "Caput Mundi" without its first emperor. August 19 marks the 2,000th anniversary of the death of Emperor Augustus. Many exciting exhibitions will be available to the public for the very first time as Rome prepares to celebrate this extraordinary historical figure. Augustus was born Gaius Octavius on September 23, 63 BC. His great-uncle, Julius Caesar, was assassinated in 43 BC, choosing Augustus as his heir. Augustus sought to avenge Caesar by defeating Anthony and Cleopatra. He destroyed them during battle in 31 BC, becoming the undisputed ruler of Rome. When Octavius assumed his kingdom, he took the name Augustus, meaning "serene" or "lofty". Augustus brought great peace and stability to the empire, setting the framework for the following four centuries. He reigned from 27BC until his death in 14AD. The events will commence at Palatine Hill, Augustus' home that subsequently became the seat of the Roman emperor. The Palatine Museum will display a restored ground floor and an upper floor with brand new multimedia equipment and a film dedicated to Augustus. Augustus's entire house has been excavated and will be revealed to the public for the first time ever. Of particular interest is the House of Livia Drusilla, Augustus's beloved third wife and trusted advisor. She gave birth to Tiberius, who would be Augustus' heir and emperor of Rome. The underground formal din- ing room, known as the triclini- um, has been refurbished with elaborate fresco paintings. The Diocletian Baths, one of the complexes of the National Roman Museums, with a restored swimming pool com- plex and an adjacent hall hold- ing architectural fragments from the baths, will open on September 24th. The Roman Forum path from the Vico Lugario to the Basilica Giulia, which has been closed to the public since the 1980's for restoration of its original topog- raphy, will reopen on October 1st. Maintaining its reputation as the cultural and historical hub of Italy and Europe, Rome invites visitors to come and be bewitched by the magnificent celebration of the life and reign of Emperor Augustus. JANe HusoN Rome Celebrates Augustus this August Apulea area, which mention the relationship between musical exorcism and the tarantula spi- der, are dated around 1100 BC. Other researchers propose that the dance is a survival from a Dionysiac cult. The tarantella music is also believed to have hypnotic effects, especially when people are exposed to the rhythm for a long period of time. Nowadays the music is used in therapy for patients with certain forms of depression and hysteria, and its effects on the endocrine system recently became an object of research. What is certain is that the Tarantella is a fascinating ancient dance, strongly rooted in Puglia's tradition. Whoever witnesses a Tarantella dance accompanied by its traditional music, is instantly captivated by its rhythm and movements and can't help but start to dance as well. If you are planning to trav- el to Puglia, don't miss " La Notte della Taranta" festival, and together with many young artists and groups of famous musicians you will contribute to keep the tradition alive. The Taranta is a traditional dance accompanied by tambourines which finds its roots in the ancient Greek myths

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