music to start over
Nobody believed it, but again this year we had our Taranta Night 2020.
On 28 August the main square of Melpignano hosted a more intimate version of the most representative concert of the Apulian soul in the world.
The 10,000 spectators of the previous editions are a distant memory, but this has not prevented those who have been able to follow the evening on the Italian national TV, to get excited and live it, perhaps dancing the taranta near the sofa at home.
What happened that August 28, we will try to describe it in this article, but before we proceed, we like it to thank those who believed in it, those who, this year, wanted to make the taranta itself felt as strong, clear and passionate as always.
The term taranta recalls the ancient phenomenon of tarantism. According to popular belief, tarantism was a disease caused by the bite of the tarantula (Lycosa tarentula), which occurred mainly in the summer months (harvest period) and which caused a state of general malaise – abdominal pain, catalepsy, sweating, palpitations – in which music, dance and colors represented the fundamental elements of the therapy which consisted, in fact, in a musical exorcism.
Music is therefore the fundamental element of this therapy of other times, we could easily speak of a first form of music therapy.
Today there are no more spiders to chase away and diseases to exorcise, but the music has remained.
And it has become a real symbol of our Puglia. Thousands of people come from afar every year to experience a crazy but unforgettable night.
For the 2020 edition, an authentic Apulian was chosen as the star of the show: Sergio Rubini, from Grumo Appula, as he said, a village pretty much unknown to the world, but which remains important because it gave him its roots.
Guests of honor included the rock soul of Gianna Nannini and the warm voice of Mahmood.
And then music, dance and songs: many artists took turns in a Taranta Night that looks really good.
In this context of excellence, it is impossible not to mention the Taranta Popular Orchestra and the Roma Sinfonietta Orchestra, maestro Paolo Buonvino.
The concert opened with the song ‘Quannu te llai la facce in the morning’ – When you wash your face in the morning – and immediately after this piece, it was a crescendo of strong emotions.
The difficult situation we are experiencing was just a bad memory for two hours. This is the power of music. The notes managed to give us the strength to start over, to still believe that next year will be better.
This phrase inspired us when we were thinking about our next blog post. We live times where the unthinkable is our new normal and we are learning to adapt like probably never before in the name of our sanity. We scrambled to find ways that are “acceptable” when it comes to work, school, family, relationships and of course travel. Â
As soon as Sergio Rubini uttered words taken from Erasmus of Rotterdam’s Praise to Madness, the words got stuck in our mind and gave meaning to the whole evening.
Can you be happy and reasonable? Or do you have to be crazy? And what does it have to do with the pizzica dance?
Everything!
The pizzica was danced almost as a cure for hysteria. You were dancing and you were happy. You danced and the hysteria went away, even if only for a while.
This is what events like this need, even in 2020, even when it seems like they can only create problems.
We all need two hours of madness, unleashed pizzica dance and a rich meaningful life.
This, will help us gain the strength needed to cope and wait for next year. For a better year!
And we at Beeyond will be ready to welcome you, whether you take a full tour or simply a stay in one of our villas, we will wait for you so we can give you some evenings of lucid madness.
In 1509 Erasmus of Rotterdam publishes a small book entitled Eulogy of Madness, the question that Erasmus asks is: is it worth sacrificing one’s happiness in the name of the reasonableness of rationality? The answer is No!
Erasmus says that to be happy you have to be crazy; yes, crazy because it is madness that helps you to forget and overcome all the things that are wrong, the things that are not right and that hurt you, even death.
Erasmus writes that if life spreads it is only due to madness because only madness helps us to find pleasure even when there seems to be no trace of pleasure, it is madness that makes us fall in love with a stranger and rely on him totally, which makes us love children even before knowing them, before knowing what they will become; that makes us cry watching a movie or listening to a song; it is the madness that makes us happy as children if the soccer team you support wins the football championship.
In short, to be happy, you need to be crazy, to look for unknown paths, to throw oneself into unthinkable undertaking and accomplish the impossible; it is only madness that allows us to live and dream.
According to Erasmus of Rotterdam, it takes a “bit” of madness to be happy. As absurd this may sound at first, we think that a bit of lucid madness could be the answer to many problems. Because we love being happy, travel, meet new people and enjoy life, we invite you to reflect of this concept.
May Music, Taranta and Puglia inspire you and touch you with the same intensity it has touched us; opening doors we didn’t even know it existed.
May you find your door, may you dream intensively and may you travel happy wherever your journey takes you!
An extraordinary event so intersected with our current times, our lives and our happiness. Another rich event in Puglia and more reasons why this region is among the best vacation spots offering something for everyone every period of the year.
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