Pios tragudài to calocèri to chimòna chorègui.

Choever sings in summer willa dance in winter.

Music is the life companion of human beings. It is their soundtrack. In the Greek-Calabrian mountains, too, there is always some good reason for playing, singing and dancing, during the entire yearly work cycle and moments of leisure, on the occasion of religious festivals and strictly secular or family celebrations.

Once, a long day’s herding or hours spent working hard in the fields were alleviated by the sound of bagpipes filling the silent Greek-Aspromonte valleys, sometimes accompanied by singing. Playing and singing have been, from the earliest forms of social life on, the best antidotes by which to combat and relieve the fatigue and loneliness of farm labour, especially shepherding.

“Plen glicìo tu cruma tu nerù condà tu pigadìu ene to dicòssu, cerameddhàro, ti scorpìszise ston àero musica palèa ce asciunnàse ste spichè ghiomàte iplo, ciòmeni nostalgìa …”

Your sound, oh bagpipes, is sweeter than that of the water near the font, dispersing antique music in the air, reawakening souls dulled by the sleep of burning nostalgia.

Mùsica palèa Musica antica from Chimàrri by Salvino Nucera.

Today, music and dance continue to represent a precious resource for the inhabitants of Greek Calabria. The songs, sounds and dance are handed down, taught to young people (family members and others) who wish to learn how to sing, if they have a good voice, and to play, beginning with the flutes that pave the way for the zampogna [Italian bagpipes]. A great effort is being made to conserve the traditional sounds and songs, in an increasingly globalised world. The passionate enthusiasm of some young people, backed by the patience of the older generation, is keeping the tradition alive.

U Sonu a ballu

San imbènnite sto chòremna èchite na chorèsoite.

When you enter the dance you must dance.

It is exhilarating to watch the motions, gestures and choreography of bodies moving to the sound of tambourines and arganetto [button accordion], cerameddhe [shawms] during the performance of u sonu a ballu.

The Sonu a Ballu Video

Old and young, women and men, led by u mastru e ballu [the dance master] perform u sonu. They transform sound and rhythm into the language of the body. Their faces, eyes, arms and feet all become one with the music. This dialogue, usually between a couple, invited by u mastru e ballu to take the floor, and a group a rota [in a wheel] surrounding the couple and vibrating in syntony with it, seems to bring time to a standstill and create a space where each one may, through gestures, bodily and facial expression, convey highly intimate messages. A cathartic, liberating time and space, where it is possible to experience and express feelings of love, friendship, the will to live and the joy of companionship.

Source

Booklet Collana Editoriale del Parco Culturale della Greek Calabria – Booklet Music and Dance Section.  A cura di Domenico Morello, Salvino Nucera, Francesca Prestia.