Dear Friends of Italy and of Italian culture, <\/P>
Spring has finally arrived, and to celebrate the awakening of the Mother City from sleepy winter the Consulate of Italy in Cape Town \u2013 in collaboration with the Italian Institute of Culture in Pretoria \u2013 has organized a series of cultural events that will entertain and engage you along all October: a double jazz concert, an Opera recital and a lecture on Dante Alighieri (for the 750th anniversary of his birth). I really hope to see most of you at these two events: let\u2019s start the good season with some great Italian music!
More events are planned for November, such as the Italian Film Festival and another jazz artist arriving in town, and the annual Christmas concert in December.
Information on these events will follow in the coming weeks, but today I would like to spend a few words in particular on the first two I mentioned:
\u25cf the double jazz concert on Oct. 4
\u25cf the Opera recital on Oct. 10.
Entrance to both events is free, and you\u2019re welcome to bring friends and family!
Please RSVP to segreteria.capetown@esteri.it<\/A>
Double Jazz concert \u2013 Sunday Oct. 4, 15h00-17h00<\/STRONG> – download the pdf\u00a0invitation<\/A>
With the help of Musica per Roma\u00a0 Foundation two different Italian jazz ensembles will perform in Cape Town, at the Chisholm Recital Room of the SA College of Music in UCT, next Sunday Oct. 4 afternoon, as the only SA leg of a broader African tour.
The first concert, Quiet Journey (Antonio Jasevoli, classic and electric guitars; Paolo Damiani, cello) will present a wide sensorial and musical vision built through improvisation. This chemistry finds the most adequate environments in the ethno-classical field and the concepts of the ritual. Original compositions and arrangements \u2013 with both moments of structured improvisations and of completely free dialogue \u2013 will highlight the experience, strongly based on the research of a sound as essential as possible.\u00a0
The second project is called Dajaloo (Pietro Tonolo, tenor sax; Giancarlo Bianchetti, electric and acoustic guitar, and Senegalese artist Dudu Kouate, percussions). Dajaloo is a word in the Wolof language, one of the countless African languages, which means \u201cto be alike, to stay together\u201d. The music of this album is the result of a trip to Senegal by saxophone player Pietro Tonolo and of his growing interest for the African music.
Light refreshments will be served between the two concerts, for what I hope will be an afternoon of both relaxing and stimulating musical experience.
Opera Recital \u2013 Saturday Oct. 10, 15h00-17h00 – <\/STRONG>download the pdf\u00a0invitation<\/A>
This is a project I am particularly attached to, since it\u2019s a bit of a challenge: bringing a first-class Opera ensemble to the established (yet not too widely known) Cultural Center of a Cape Town township, Langa. The idea is simple: stirring consolidated routines, bringing people from various backgrounds together, offering \u2013 in a few words \u2013 a different experience. Rarely, if ever, an Opera recital was performed in a township, which offers the occasion for a two-way innovative endeavor: proposing Opera to a new audience, and proposing a new setting to Opera lovers.
For those who have never been to Langa, the beautiful Guga S\u2019thebe Arts and Culture Centre is only about 400mt from the \u2018Langa\u2019 exit on N2, in a very safe and peaceful area. The Centre features a creatively designed auditorium and is home to many interesting community-based projects. There will be ample parking space in front of the Centre, and reliable car guards will be provided for added security.
I sincerely hope many of you will feel curious to discover a new cultural venue, and to witness the collaboration between a professional Italian Ensemble and local students from the UCT Opera School.
A taste of Opera from Italy to South Africa will have the Ensemble U. Giordano (Dino De Palma, violin; Luciano Tarantino, cello; Gianna Fratta, piano; Teresa Di Bari, soprano; Cataldo Caputo, tenor; Federico Longhi, baritone) offering a selection of acclaimed arias from Italian Operas, preceded by the performance of UCT Opera School Singers (Siphokazi Molteno, mezzo-soprano; Thando Mjandana, tenor; and Luvuyo Mbundu, Baritone; accompanied at the piano by Dr. Lisa Engelbrecht) in a stimulating operatic collaboration between the experience and tradition of Italy and the talent and enthusiasm of South Africa.
After the concert, at around 4.30pm, a light cocktail reception will close the program.<\/P>
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With my warmest regards,
Alfonso Tagliaferri
Consul of Italy in Cape Town<\/P>
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