Italy’s Accordion Industry: Tiny And Thriving

Paul Torna sent in this link to share with IFAFA Members. The article describes the community of Castelfidardo, in the Marche region of Italy. Paul has relatives in nearby Nereto. Since Tradizioni doesn’t have copyright permission to publish the entire article, readers are encouraged to click through to the article for more information and pictures. Please click on the link below (or copy and paste it to your browser):

http://www.npr.org/2012/01/09/144809351/italys-accordion-industry-tiny-and-thriving

Notte della Taranta Festival

The Notte della Taranta Festival 2012 in Salento, Italy

La Notte della Taranta is the largest music festival dedicated to the revival of pizzica music of Salento and its fusion with other music ranging from world music to rock, from jazz to symphonic. Born in 1998 on the initiative of the Unione dei Comuni della Grecìa Salentina and of the Istituto Diego Carpitella, in recent years the festival has grown in size and cultural prestige thanks to the Province of Lecce – which since 2001 has been part of organizations that promote and organize La Notte della Taranta in the Puglia Region.

This year on August 25, the Convent of the Augustinians in Melpignano will serve as the backdrop for La Notte della Taranta. A unique event that annually attracts over 400,000 spectators, the festival is divided between the towns of Greek Salento (Calimera, Carpignano Salentino, Castrignano dei Greci, Corigliano d’Otranto, Cutrofiano, Lecce, Martignano, Melpignano, Sternatia, Soleto, Zollino) and the municipalities of Cursi, and Galatina Alessano.

Continue reading “Notte della Taranta Festival”

Rificolona in Florence — Ona, Ona, Ona!

Rificolona in Florence — Ona, Ona, Ona!

Ona, Ona, Ona,
O che bella Rificolona,
La mia l’é coi fiocchi,
La tua l’é coi pidocchi!		 (Ona, ona, ona,
What a beautiful Rificolona,
Mine with bows is tied,
In yours, lice do reside!)

Florentine children sing this song as they wander through the streets of Florence the first week of September, carrying papier-mâché lanterns tied to the ends of sticks, called rificolone. There are several theories as to where the tradition originates from, some think it commemorates the triumphant entry of Florentine troops into Siena on August 2 1555, when the soldiers tied lanterns onto the ends of their pikes.

Continue reading “Rificolona in Florence — Ona, Ona, Ona!”

Vino Novello

From www.SeeTuscany.com

It’s Time to Celebrate the Bounty of the Harvest

Everybody is waiting for the first wine of the year, vino novello, which goes so well with the chestnuts that also appear in late autumn. As the days shorten and the shadows lengthen, people have always gathered to celebrate the bounty of the harvest. The most important crop in Tuscany is wine, and much is planned: in mid-September Greve will host the annual Rassegna del Chianti Classico , an ideal occasion to taste the most recent vintage and decide whose wines you want to stock up on. There will also be shows (including a photographic exhibition) and panel discussions.

On the last weekend of September the town of Impruneta will hold the annual Festa dell’Uva, a festival in which the town’s four neighborhoods compete to see who can provide the best allegorical representation of the grape harvest. It’s street theater at its best, and the town square will come alive with beautiful floats and fancifully costumed performers.

Continue reading “Vino Novello”

Children’s Abruzzese Fairytale

Gracie Scala Adamson grew up as the youngest of seven daughters in an Italian immigrant family in Australia. Gracie’s mother, Chiarina, was born in Vasto, Abruzzo, and this is one of the fairytales she would tell her children. Le Tre Favette (The Three Broad Beans) was one of Gracie’s favorite stories, but one that she could not find in fairytale books. Inspired by her mother’s storytelling, and driven by a desire to pass on the tradition to her nephews and nieces, she recently translated the story, created the illustrations, and had it published.

Continue reading “Children’s Abruzzese Fairytale”

Painting With Stone

Florence, Tuscany – Take time to visit this tiny jewel in Florence: the Opificio delle Pietre Dure. Literally meaning “Factory of Hard Stones”, this lovely museum is an excellent antidote to “compulsory tourist sites” overload. The subject of its collection is semiprecious stone and its use in intarsio (inlay) for the production of all sorts of decoration.

The craft of inlay work goes back to antiquity, but it was revived on a grand scale by Ferdinando I de’ Medici for the decoration of the furnishings, artworks, and architecture seen today all over Florence. In fact this Grand Ducal workshop was established to carry out the elaborate stone inlay work found in the Cappella dei Principi (Basilica of San Lorenzo). The art of assembling stone fragments to cover large or small surfaces, including objects, furniture or whole walls, was studied and perfected by skillful and carefully chosen artisans.

Continue reading “Painting With Stone”

Buon Onomastico

In Italy, as well as in many other countries in Europe and Latin America, people celebrate the day of the year associated with one’s given name.Italians call it onomastico.

The custom originated with the Catholic and Orthodox calendar of saints, where believers named after a particular saint would celebrate that saint’s feast day. In Italy, one’s onomastico is seen to be almost as important as one’s birthday – often people receive small gifts on their Onomastico.

Ninety percent of Italians are named after saints for varying reasons. Many are named this way simply due to being born on a particular saint’s day, while others because of patron saint of their town. Still others are given their name because their parents have a special connection or received a grace from a specific saint.