The parish church of São João Baptista, in Moura, will receive next Saturday, May 6th, at 21 pm, a remarkable evocation of musical and religious treasures of Southern Italy. Under the title O Southern corner of Italy: Sicily and Two Calabrias (XNUMX-XNUMXth centuries), this concert reveals an almost unknown heritage, but common to Portugal and Italy, highlighting the affinities of Sicilian and Calabrian music with Portuguese.
The musical direction is by Franco Pavan, conductor and musicologist who carried out extensive musicological research on this common heritage in various regions of the Mediterranean basin.
The tonic accent in Southern Europe is something that enthusiastically excites the director-general of Festival Terras sem Sombra, José António Falcão: “we are very proud of this connection to the music of Calabria and Sicily, it is a great honor to be able to welcome artists among us from the superlative category of Pino de Vittorio and Franco Pavan; when “a certain Europe” wants to crush us through overwhelming normalization, without respecting our culture, art is an active form of resistance to the machine that devours everything, in the name of the euro and of cultural and economic normalization”.
Juan Ángel Vela del Campo, for his part, draws attention to the fact that this unusual concert, in addition to highlighting beautiful texts from the Baroque era, full of spirituality and love for nature and life, promotes the recovery of ancient southern instruments, whose golden period corresponds to the repertoires of the XNUMXth and XNUMXth centuries.
“The chitarra dante, the archlaude and the harp accompany tarantellas and other traditional songs from southern Italy, including beautiful sacred compositions, where you can see subtle correspondences with the landscape and customs of Alentejo”, defends the artistic responsible for the Festival.
There is no lack of rarities of dazzling beauty in the musical heritage that will be presented in Moura.
As Francisco Pavan explains, “for poetry in the Sicilian language, this was a time of extraordinary flowering, which reflected an unusual level of sensitivity”.
Calabria is the main theme of the meeting: “we brought together works of unusual aesthetic interest, focused on traditional music that today still retains vast popularity, contrasting with the situation in Sicily, where tradition declined earlier”.
From the program that will be listened to, he points out: “we tried to present a brief vision of a wonderful set of texts, apparently unlimited”, noting that the repertoire carries with it centuries of history based on oral tradition.
Laboratory '600 it constitutes an unavoidable reference in the international panorama of Renaissance and Baroque music. Founded and directed by Franco Pavan, it is formed by artists specialized in musical research in totally unexplored fields.
This together, which presents itself fundamentally as a device of plucked string instruments, brings to Alentejo, for the first time, two performers who have triumphed on international stages: Elisa La Marca and Flora Papadopoulos.
A key figure on the European scene, tenor Pino De Vittorio will do the honors in the house. Born in Taranto, he has performed in the most prestigious theaters in the world.
He is the founder of the theater company Pupi e Fresedde and made his opera debut at the Teatro San Carlo, in Naples, shining at the Teatro La Fenice, in Venice, and at the Théâtre des Champs-Élyseés, in Paris.
He regularly collaborates with I Turchini, another regular presence at the Festival Terras sem Sombra (they have already performed in Odemira, this year, and in Castro Verde, in 2014), with whom he performed several baroque operas.
Biodiversity – Unshadowed Lands at Herdade da Contenda
Sunday morning, as usual, musicians, visitors and the local community come together for an action in favor of safeguarding biodiversity.
This time, the target will be Herdade da Contenda, on the Spanish border – one of the natural areas with the highest preservation rates in the Alentejo.
The Festival Terras sem Sombra collaborates, for its organization, with the Natural Park of Vale do Guadiana (Institute for the Conservation of Nature and Forests) and the Municipality of Moura.
The name of Contenda dates back to the times of the Christian “Reconquista” of Alentejo (1893th century). This estate belongs to the Municipality of Moura since XNUMX, after the signing of the Treaty of Madrid, which defined the local border.
It has always been distinguished for having a high faunal diversity; this derives not only from its isolation, but also from the contact of the Serra Morena species with the Alentejo plain.
With 5270 hectares, it is an area characterized by an exceptional abundance of species from the larger game, but it has a much wider value for nature conservation. Among the values existing in its habitat, the fish community (including the presence of the very rare saramugo) and birds (vultures, black storks, eagles) stand out.
It is also a property with uses associated with the forest, embodied in a Forest Management Plan.
Along a pedestrian path, participants will analyze the biodiversity of Contenda in its multiple facets, culminating on the banks of Ribeira do Murtigão. The experimentation of the technique of removing non-native fish species will be carried out here, within the scope of the LIFE Saramugo – Saramugo Conservation (Anaecypris hispanica) project of the League for the Protection of Nature.
There will also be an opportunity to lift the veil over the ruins of the convent of Nossa Senhora das Necessidades, in Tomina. A rich initiative that challenges the union of natural, cultural and heritage values.
Terras Sem Sombra distinguished with the EFFE seal (European Union)
The Festival Terras Sem Sombra was awarded the “EFFE – Europe for Festivals, Festivals for Europe” seal for the 2015-2016 biennium.
This initiative has the support of the European Union and aims to recognize festivals that demonstrate a deep artistic commitment, a close relationship with their communities and a strong international perspective.
“We want to show that the richness of the interior is reflected not only in the people who stay, but also in the ability to gently welcome others and encourage the arrival of new inhabitants,” noted Sara Fonseca, executive director of Terras sem Sombra.
And he observes: “the Festival affects the regional economy, creates a stir and positively disturbs the most peaceful souls”. An arduous task, which has been carried out for over a decade by the hand of volunteers, now deserves international praise.
The jury distinguished 761 festivals from 31 different countries, including Portugal, in recognition of their excellence and innovation.
This first generation of festivals bearing the EFFE quality label will see their work promoted on the platform's website, a gateway into Europe for cultural festivals of superlative quality.
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