Musicàntica was formed in Los Angeles, California in 1994. The group performed music and songs from the oral tradition of Southern Italy, primarily the repertoire composed by non-formally trained musicians such as fishermen, shepherds, cart drivers, peasants, street vendors, and others.
Such repertoire, however, does not only include pieces from those historical periods, but also contains contemporary and original compositions based on the traditional Italian musical style and form. The integration of stylistic elements from other cultures especially in the instrumentation is also part of the group’s creative approach.
By allowing diverse timbrical effects to further color the music, the group underlined its openness in sound experimentation. Many of the instruments used by Musicàntica are native to Italy, such as the tamburello (frame drum), used for the popular tarantella, the chitarra battente (a type of medieval ten strings guitar), the scacciapensieri (jew’s harp), the double bena, a Sardinian cane clarinet, and various percussion instruments such as castanets, sheep bells, jingle collars, and such.
Other instruments used are classical and acoustic guitars, mandolin, various recorders, and the flute. Musicàntica also employed several non-Italian instruments such as the Greek bouzouki, the Arabic ‘ud, a Russian plucked zither, and assorted percussion instruments from various parts of the world.
The Musicians: Enzo Fina: tamburelli, guitar, mandolin, jew’s harp, percussion, fina mbira, recorder, vocals; Roberto Catalano: guitar, mandolin, chitarra battente, bouzouki, jew’s harp, ‘ud, benas, percussion, vocals.
Discography:
auccalamma
Sott’al fico (2015)
Author: Angel Romero
Angel Romero y Ruiz has dedicated his life to musical exploration. His efforts included the creation of two online portals, worldmusiccentral.org and musicasdelmundo.com. In addition, Angel is the co-founder of the Transglobal World Music Chart, a panel of world music DJs and writers that celebrates global sounds. Furthermore, he delved into the record business, producing world music studio albums and compilations. His works have appeared on Alula Records, Ellipsis Arts, Indígena Records and Music of the World.
