The Eugenio Bennato and the Taranta Power Experience Part 1

Day 1: The Press Conference or When Eugenio Bennato Learned How to Use the Chopsticks

Modern father of the Tarantella, Eugenio Bennato

With a heavy dose of courage coupled with the kindness of Ms. Emanuela Adesini, the Cultural Attaché of the Embassy of Italy, I was given the wonderful opportunity to have a unique musical experience during the visit of Eugenio Bennato and the Taranta Power here in the Philippines.

The group’s visit in the country is in line with this year's celebration of the Italian National Day. As I’ve written before in a previous entry, they are scheduled to have a concert and a lecture/demo. But before these events happen, they met members of the press first at the Shang Palace inside the Makati Shangri-La Hotel. I was a bit intimidated at first at the press conference when I found out that I was the only blogger there. But the other people were so warm and friendly and were also interested in what I do and blog about and that did make me feel at ease. Besides, we were all there for a common purpose, to meet Eugenio Bennato and the rest of the band.

After brief introductions, Bennato started to talk about the history of the Tarantella, the ritual dance of southern Italy. He said that traditionally, the dance was thought of to be the cure for a poisonous spider’s bite. Whoever was bitten by this spider had to dance frantically for hours in order to flush out the poison. I’m not sure if this method has been approved by the medical world or if anyone still resorts to this method in order to cure this malady.

But it cannot be denied that Tarantella, the dance and the accompanying music stood the test of time. Bennato then mentioned how this music and dance have undergone a revival among the youth in Southern Italy through the Taranta Power which he founded back in 1998. And this music is very much different from the traditional Tarantella and even from the kind of Tarantella which is catered to tourists. And that the success of this resurgence stemmed from the youth rediscovering their roots.

Someone asked if Tarantella could be considered as Italy’s equivalent to the Flamenco of Spain. Bennato answered that it is since both have strong rhythms, a Mediterranean feel, and elements of North African music. He also added that both Tarantella and Flamenco value the relationships of the musicians during performances.

He then proceeded to introduce the other members of his band who are Ezio Lambiase (guitars), Mohammed El Alaoui Ezzaime (vocals), Valter Vivarelli (percussion), Stefano Simonetta (bass) and Sonia Totaro (vocals and dancer). He mentioned that Valter, while being the youngest, is very important to the group since he establishes the rhythm, a very important element of the Tarantella. Also mentioned was Mohammed since his vocals give the group’s sound that North African flavor which is not surprising since he is from Morocco.

As a side note, it was very amusing to see Bennato and some of the band members try using the chopsticks for the first time while the press conference was happening. And another amusing moment was when I finally met Cristina Moricca of the Philippine-Italian Association whose husband I’ve met before at a comicbook store.

Eugenio Bennato and the Taranta Power with the event organizers

The press conference was such a tease since all we heard was what Bennato and the others had to say about the music. But that doesn’t even come close compared to actually hearing the music itself. Fortunately, we were given audio CD’s of Taranta Power and I immediately listened to them once I got home. I haven’t even finished the first CD that I played when I told myself that it would be truly awesome to see the group perform this music live. And the chance to see and hear them perform live would come a day later.

Day 2: The Lecture/Demo When RAd Learned How to Play Triplets with the Tambourine
Day 3: The Reception and the Concert or When RAd Totally Experienced the Taranta Power