Traditional music
A true cultural crossroads, Sicily has recorded Arab, Spanish and Greek influences in many of its musical traditions. This is particularly palpable in hymns such as the carters' songs, which, although the trade has disappeared, are still commonly sung. It's far from the only thing sung on the island, because in Sicily... we sing all the time. You only need to spend a little time on the island to realize that, here, regardless of age, everyone sings at the top of their lungs, humming, whistling and sometimes even shouting, in the street, in restaurants or in markets. Since the Middle Ages, they have been the breeding ground for traditional folk songs, some of them the most complex, which have inspired many composers: from Bellini, son and glory of Catania, to Luciano Berio, who recorded the songs of the fishermen and the cries of the Sicilian markets in his works. In the early hours of the morning, listen to the skill with which the fishmongers of Catania or Palermo try to sell you the most modest of sardines! Let yourself be intoxicated by their melodies and, between the whispers, you'll be able to distinguish Arab origins... Another typical island tune, La Siciliana, is one of the most emblematic. A dance tune that appeared around the 17thcentury , it is characterized by its slow, dotted rhythms and could be likened to a tarantella. Pastoral, bucolic and sentimental, La Siciliana appears several times in Alessandro Scarlatti's work, as in La Gloria di Primavera (1716).
Unsurprisingly, Sicily is home to many traditional instruments, such as the ciaramedda, a type of zampogna (Italian bagpipe family), the friscaletto, a popular little cane flute from Provence, the marranzanu, a jawed harp, and theorganetto, a popular diatonic accordion dating from the 19th century. Percussion instruments include the cupa cupa, a friction drum with a unique sound.
Another special feature of Sicily is its passion for traditional brass bands, known as banda, an integral part of the island's heritage. Every town and village has one, accompanying processions during major religious festivals. The most famous of these is undoubtedly Banda Ionica, which, although it concentrates on the traditional music of Campania, Calabria and Sicily, does not hesitate to add touches of classical music, opera or jazz. Today, Sicilian musicians such as Saro Tribastone take the traditional sounds of Sicily - and even southern Italy and the Mediterranean - on the road, blending them with world music.
A good opportunity to get close to Sicilian musical traditions is to attend the International Festival of Sacred Music. More than just a musical rendezvous, this event is also a symbol of traditional Sicilian culture, featuring a top-class program with many local artists. The lesser-known Sagro del Mandorlo in Fiore festival in Agrigento also offers a fine panorama of the discipline. Alternatively, Palermo's Teatro Ditirammu has a space dedicated to the memory of folk songs and traditions.
Classical music
A true local pride, you can't afford to miss some of the sacred monsters Sicily has produced, starting with Alessandro Scarlatti (1660-1725). Although Sicilian, he studied music in Naples. His first opera was a resounding success, and opened the doors of the Roman salons to him, where he served the nobles and clerics of the Eternal City. From 1684 onwards, he divided his time between Naples and Rome, according to the positions he held. His main work is Il Trionfo dell'onore, first performed in Rome to great acclaim, then in Naples, where it was revived 18 times! Alessandro Scarlatti introduced his son Domenico (1685-1757) to music at an early age. Alongside his duties as organist in Naples, Domenico composed religious music and operas. After a brief stay in Venice, where he met Handel and Gasparini, who were to influence his art, he redoubled his activity in Rome, but in 1720 he entered the service of the King of Portugal in Lisbon as Master of the Court Chapel. In 1729, he officiated at the Spanish court in Madrid, where he had followed the Infanta Maria Barbara. His output includes many sonatas and a few operas written in his early years.
Another Sicilian musical star is Vincenzo Bellini (1801-1835). He is one of Italy's most important opera composers. The son of a modest Sicilian organist, he studied at the Royal Conservatory of Naples. Well-known in Italy, he moved to London, then Paris, where he became a friend of Chopin, Cherubini and Liszt. His best-known operas, immortalized by Callas, are La Somnambule, Norma (1831) and Les Puritains (1835). Finally, it's worth noting that it was in Italy, and for a time in Sicily, that Richard Wagner (1813-1883) sought refuge from the Germany he came to loathe, before dying in Venice. In Palermo (at the Hotel des Palmes), he completed his testament and masterpiece Parsifal, an unsurpassed monument in the history of music that opened the door to Debussy's modernity. As you wander through the city's streets, amidst its dilapidated, gutted palaces, and especially at dusk, you'll better understand why the orchestration took on such funereal, twilight hues. Less famous, Sicily is also the birthplace of Errico Petrella (1813-1877), the most popular opera composer of the mid-19th century, right up to Verdi.
More contemporary, Roberto Carnevale - an Italian composer, pianist and conductor strongly influenced by serialism and minimalism - and the excellent cellist Giovanni Sollima - who also ventures into jazz and rock - are children of Sicily. As are Palermo's Salvatore Di Vittorio - composer and conductor, music director of the Chamber Orchestra of New York - and Salvatore Sciarrino - one of the most (if not the most) performed composers in the world today - who are among the hottest musicians on the scene.
The island also boasts a dynamic philharmonic ensemble - the Sicilian Symphony Orchestra - which, over the years, has been conducted by many prestigious guest conductors: Stravinsky, Chailly, Muti, Milhaud, Penderecki and even Ennio Morricone. Its current conductor, the Belarusian Evgeny R. Bushkov, is regularly praised for his performances. The orchestra performs at the Teatro Politeama Garibaldi, one of Palermo's finest theaters. Built in 1859, recognizable by its round shape and neoclassical architecture, the building is worth a visit for its own sake. Year-round, the venue plays host to some of the city's most prestigious artists. Another of the city's major stages, the Teatro Massimo is the third largest in Europe (in terms of surface area) after the Opéra Garnier in Paris and the Vienna Opera. Majestic for its ancient Sicilian architecture incorporating elements of Greek temples, its dimensions allow it to seat 1,880 people. Now under the direction of Israeli conductor Omer Meir Wellber - also director of the prestigious BBC Philharmonic - the Teatro Massimo is set to return to international prominence thanks to its creative and modern approach. Catania's Teatro Bellini also hosts most of the city's operas and concerts. A renowned venue for lyrical art. Also, every July and August, the town of Noto organizes NotoMusica, a series of classical concerts, often good ones, in the San Domenico cloister. The festival has been running for over 40 years.
Popular music
Sicily has carried through the generations some great voices that have made the tunes and traditions of the island travel with them. Among them, the most emblematic artist is without a doubt Rosa Balistreri (1927-1990). Her hoarse voice, full of melancholy, and her strong personality made her an icon of the 20th century. Throughout her career, the "Cantatrice du Sud" has never stopped singing the splendors and mysteries of her island. A career that owes much to the writer and playwright Dario Fo who propelled her by making her play in his shows. It is also the case of Ciccio Busacca, another great name of the Sicilian song who wrote a lot for the shows of the Nobel Prize. Other popular musicians who are steeped in their island include Franco Trincale, who has set his songs in the tradition of Sicilian storytellers, the Taberna Mylaensis, a group from the 1970s whose compositions were steeped in Sicilian traditions and stories, Etta Scollo, famous for her blend of local traditions, pop and jazz, Alfio Antico, a great drummer on frame and heir to the popular repertoire of Sicily, and Oriana Civile, a specialist in traditional music of the island and an important player in its renaissance. Today Mario Incudine, Franco Battiato, Carmen Consoli and Fratelli Mancuso are among the most popular musicians in Sicily. All of them sing (or have sung) in Sicilian languages and try to take the Sicilian traditions and colors to other genres and other lands (often rock or pop).
Jazz
A largely unknown fact, Sicily helped shape the sound of New Orleans. Between the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century, the American city experienced a significant wave of migration from Sicily: the island's capital, Palermo, had established a cotton and citrus trade with New Orleans. As a result, a shipping line connected the two port cities, which allowed many Sicilians to migrate to New Orleans (among others). This is how much of New Orleans jazz was shaped by Sicilian music. The most famous example is the Original Dixieland Jass Band, founded by cornetist Nick LaRocca and drummer Tony Sbarbaro, both sons of Sicilian immigrants, who introduced the colors of the island into the city's jazz.
Today, Sicily has a dynamic jazz scene with names such as Enzo Rao and his band Shamal, who have added Sicilian and Oriental influences to American jazz, the great pianist Salvatore Bonafede and the young saxophonist Nicola Caminiti.
Sicily is an island in love with jazz, and of course it is home to a famous dedicated event: the Catania Jazz Festival. Since its creation in 1983, it has hosted the greats of the genre: Sun Ra Arkestra, McCoy Tyner, Ornette Coleman, Dizzy Gillespie, Wayne Shorter, Dee Dee Bridgewater and Jaco Pastorius. Otherwise, in Messina, the Picnic bar regularly programs them. No wonder: the owner is a jazzman himself!
