The Eugenio Bennato and the Taranta Power Experience Part 3

Day 3: The Reception and the Concert or When RAd Totally Experienced the Taranta Power

All I really wanted right from the was just to have access to Eugenio Bennato and the Taranta Power during their stint here in Manila so that I’d have more material for my blog. I still could’ve written something about them even if I didn't have any access at all. I would've just watched them from a distance but I felt that things could be more special if I could take it a step further and really go for it. Thankfully, the Embassy of Italy gave me access to the group and I couldn’t have asked for anything more. But they also took it a step further and invited me to take part in the Italian National Day reception at the Ayala Museum lobby.

RAd with Eugenio Bennato and the Taranta Power

Despite feeling like a lost kid in the woods at first when I entered the museum, I did manage to enjoy the reception very much. I was able to see a few people from the press conference a couple of days earlier and I updated them with what happened during the lecture/demo/clinic the day before. I also got the opportunity to talk to several members of the diplomatic corps while we were enjoying the Italian food and wine that were served. Many of them were curious about the Eugenio Bennato and the Taranta Power concert happening after the reception since they still had no idea about what Tarantella music is all about. And it was such a delight explaining to them a bit about what Tarantella is all about and I hoped that my explanation made them excited to see the concert.

RAd with Italian Ambassador Luca Fornari
and his wife Silvana Novelli Fornari

I was so glad that I was finally able to thank Italian Ambassador Luca Fornari and his wife Silvana Novelli Fornari for all the music and cultural events that they had brought here during the past year. And I was also pleased to see Israeli Ambassador Zvi Vapni and his wife Limor Vapni as well. And then I remembered that I’ve been invited to both countries’ national day celebrations because of my involvement with music.

After the reception was over, the guests took a short walk to the Fashion Walk over at Greenbelt 5 for what was my most awaited event of the evening: the concert. And one couldn’t fail but notice the Vespa scooters that were on exhibit once they stepped outside the museum and there was also another display near the performance area at the Fashion Walk. And as an added treat, a gelato and coffee station were setup as well and anyone could just line up and get them for free. Availing free scoops of gelato and shots of espresso just made me more excited for the concert to start.

Eugenio Bennato and the Taranta Power

And then the concert finally started as Eugenio Bennato and the Taranta Power composed of Ezio Lambiase (guitars), Mohammed El Alaoui Ezzaime (vocals), Valter Vivarelli (percussion), Stefano Simonetta (bass) and Sonia Totaro (vocals and dancer) walked on stage. I initially prepared to take down notes regarding the actual performance and I also planned to obtain a copy of the set list for reference so that I can observe and find out which song the audience liked the most. But I failed to do any of this since I immediately got lost in the music and decided to completely forget about blogging and just enjoy the concert. I couldn’t even figure out how I was able to get any decent photos that night since holding still proved to be very difficult as I really got the urge to dance. I guess that the combination of the alcohol from the wine and the caffeine from the espresso shots really got me in a party mood.

Eugenio Bennato 

As the concert went on, people really got into the party mood as well as many left their seats and went right in front of the stage in an area were they could dance. I wasn’t able to dance during the lecture/demo since I got busy playing the tambourine but I wasn’t able to contain it during the concert so I ended up dancing as well.

Mohammed El Alaoui Ezzaime

But the best moment for me was definitely during the band’s encore performance. Three participants from the lecture/demo were invited joined the band on stage to showcase how the Filipinos were able to connect with the Tarantella music. The first two who performed onstage were dancers from the Lyceum Dance Troupe and they joined Sonia in her dance to the delight of the crowd since they were able to hold their own despite only having a day to learn the steps. And then the next one to join the band was nobody else but me since I also participated at the group’s lecture/demo. I then entered the stage, grabbed one of the bigger tambourines and played alongside Valter. It was such a blast being able to perform on stage considering that I am not a percussionist at all and that I even played badly the day before. But it was no time for me to be scared since this was a once in a lifetime moment not just for me, but for the two dancers as well. The concert was almost at an end (since it was already an encore performance) so I just had to enjoy the moment as much as I can before it everything was over. It was an exhilarating sensation performing on stage with everybody else just jamming and having fun. And I found it really odd that I didn’t get nervous at all like how I usually did whenever I was about to perform. I guess that this is what happens when one experiences the Taranta Power.

RAd with Emanuela Adesini, Cultural Attaché of the Italian Embassy

The past three days had been such an awesome time and this was made possible through the kindness and generosity of Ms. Emanuela Adesini, Cultural Attaché of the Embassy of Italy, Ms. Cristina Moricca of the Philippine-Italian Association and Ms. Irene Rada of the Cultural Center of the Philippines. My Eugenio Bennato and the Taranta Power experience has indeed come to an end. But I do hope that they’d be back soon and if they ever need an additional percussionist, I am just here. Until then, I'd keep on practicing triplets with the tambourine.

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

Day 2: The Lecture/Demo or When RAd Learned How to Play Triplets with the Tambourine