Maria Moramarco book offers a passionate, true act of love for the music of tradition, much of the repertoire collected, processed, sung in three decades and more alone and with Uaragniaun, the group formed in 1978 in Altamura (BA) with Bolognese
Luigi and Silvio
Teot (editors of the volume).
In 273 pages (20 € the price of the cover) song lyrics, scores, photographs, the DVD of an important history, the most significant of the whole 'movement' of the Italian folk revival.
Moramarco writes in the introduction by the grand title: "Splitting the beans"
"(...) I would say, spend, give you, "the paraula" chants of the Murgia, the ones that have survived for generations on wings of the spoken word with the characteristic light of this code that always leaves behind some loss, because it has the seal of the scaffolding and writing. The power of these words was the singing. "
"(...) Far from wanting to raise the flag of the preservation of the dialect under vacuum, and aware that linguistic phenomena are naturally in constant evolution and change, you step because the words are not erased, forgotten, void, because understand the importance of what belonged to those who preceded us, makes us somewhat more rich. "
appeal taken in the short essay by Luigi Bolognese che segue (“Un tesoro immateriale”), che riflette sulla straordinaria opportunità di far includere anche questo inestimabile patrimonio tra i beni ‘immateriali’ a tutela dell’UNESCO, come già per il canto a tenores sardo e i pupi siciliani.
Nelle pagine che seguono, Teot, percussionista del gruppo, affronta la questione complessa del rapporto tra tradizione e cultura contemporanea, in cui l’oralità (“Parole” non a caso è il titolo del libro) rischia di diventare facile ostaggio dei “furbetti del pentagramma” (solo nel 2007, dopo un lungo travaglio etico, Teot e Bolognese hanno deciso di depositare a loro nome in SIAE gran parte del repertorio) and should be sacked for purposes other than the 'transmission' between generations or, more simply, authentic self-expression.
Teot its contribution in rebuilding some of the major open questions in the debate in recent years, moreover we have already dealt with in "Folk Genetically Modified" (Stampa Alternativa 2003):
- the experience of the 'folk revival' as a path to back from the suggestions of the 'progressive rock';
- the invention of "world music" and its paradoxical effects;
- the advent of new technologies that have structurally changed the music market and the same practices of listening;
- the complex, sticky question of authenticity of the 'popular music', flattened on the ridiculous controversy philological tools of choice.
"So what tools to use or not use is a false issue," writes Teot. "Or we had to go around doing concerts, playing only sombre dark and tambourine, but be careful, we should also wear clothes and caps of the peasants."
The story detailed the operation of 'rethinking' of the materials collected by Maria Moramarco reveals the absolute freedom in approaching Uaragniaun shamelessly alla tradizione orale riproponendola in una chiave nuova, più accessibile per i tempi, anche a costo di intervenire profondamente sugli elementi strutturali del canto: “Ci siamo mossi ovviamente cercando di non perdere mai le melodie originarie", precisa il musicista, "ma abbiamo operato aggiungendovi incisi dove mancavano, utilizzando parti ripetute dei testi o soltanto variazioni melodiche coerenti con le melodie di base. Oppure abbiamo operato sul tempo, aumentandolo o diminuendolo, quando scoprivamo che poteva “funzionare” meglio, anche in rapporto alla tipologia del canto stesso…”.
Operazione che, se da un lato può sortire l’effetto di irritare i residui difensori della presunta ‘purezza’ of 'tradition', the other looks like the only
consistent
respectful
natural
honest
conceivable practice area in 'folk': only by acting with renewed sensitivity, culture, creativity on the forms we have received can be given survival forward in the future the songs of our past.
Provided, however, to prepare updated features that steer clear of the mere logic of today's popular entertainment pure and simple (which ends, for that reason, in order to confuse the last radio hit with an old ditty ...).
is what is missing, we believe, the analysis of Teot, as a logical consequence della pur puntuale riflessione proposta…
Prima della sezione dei materiali, il corposo approfondimento del repertorio proposto, a cura di
Onofrio Arpino (“Una ‘lettura possibile’), infine, offre al lettore più di un elemento per penetrare l’affascinante universo ‘popolare’ degli Uaragniaun, indagando le strutture portanti dei testi raccolti dai tanti ‘portatori’ anonimi (che, come si sa, anonimi non sono…) della tradizione…
Di piacevole lettura, denso di importanti sollecitazioni, il volume di Moramarco è una testimonianza davvero esclusiva, in 'presa diretta', che assume significati più ampi nel present itself as an instrument for interpreting the contemporary dynamics of a territory, Puglia, rose to prominence in the news in recent years, unfortunately only for reasons and repertoires 'others' (particularly the mass media phenomenon of the so-called 'neotarantismo' ...).
(September 4, 2009)
● The Uaragniaun in 2009 :
Moramarco Maria - vocals and guitar
Luigi Bolognese - guitar, bouzouki, mandoloncello, baglama
Sivio Teot - tammorre, percussion, flutes, harmonium
Nico Berardi - bagpipes, flutes, straight, Quena, charango, accordion, guitar
●
Discografia degli Uaragniaun :
“Canzoni dell’Alta Murgia” (LP/cassetta – Territorio e Cultura P.1/31257, 1990)
“Uailì” (CD - Piazza Edizioni e Officina TE13496, 1996)
“Octofolium” (CD – Officina U001, 1998)
“Skuarrajazz” (CD – Dunya FY 8800, 2000)
“1799-1999. Giacobini & Sanfedisti” (CD - Piazza Edizioni CP002, 2001)
“Fiorita” (CD - Piazza Edizioni e Officina CP021, 2001)
“U diavole e l’acqua sante” (CD – Felmay fy8128, 2007)
“Lamalunga Live” (2CDs - CDP07 Square Editions, 2009) live
●
Bibliography (selection
)
Silvio Teot, "Thirty years played. Notes stave off the Italian folk music through the experience Uaragniaun. "(Editions La Piazza, Bari 2002);
Luca Ferrari," Genetically Modified Folk "(Stampa Alternativa, Roma-Viterbo 2003) pp. 131-132.
● Contact Info :
Luigi Bolognese
via Palestro, 21 70022 Altamura (BA)
cell.: 3392476407
luigibolognese@alice.it
http://www.uaragniaun.com
