165. Isolation can't stop an "Aria", and Verdi's "Va Pensiero" sings on our World
By Giulio D'Ercole
The importance of sharing the core of Italian beauty
Since the beginning of this quarantine, with my business being shattered as well as one of million others, I decided and chose to keep my reputation for being a sharer of positive thinking and beauty through my small but hopefully inspiring blogs. Therefore, since the last four weeks or so, I have been posting everyday individual self-standing blogs and kind of thematic ones.
Today, continuing the series inspired by ensemble virtual choirs I will share one of the most beautiful arias that have made Italian Opera one of the most appreciated forms of art in the entire world, detaching Italy from its most trivial and simple stereotypes such as pasta, pizza, mandolino and of course, Mafia (obviously when I mention trivial stereotypes, I am not talking of the immense food and wine culture Italy has).
I am sharing this today, because, as I said, our tourism industry has been destroyed by the Coronavirus pandemic, and I hope this video will remind you of all the amazing art, beauty and culture we still have to offer you, as soon as we, all together, will get out from this dramatic times.
A message from the International Opera Choir
Coronavirus Pandemic has profoundly changed the daily lives of Italians, confined to stay home and combat the viral emergency. Even the world of showbiz has taken a big blow and musicians, singers, directors, etc. We are all forced to cancel performances and concert activities with economic loss and unspeakable damage to mental well-being. International Opera Choir - Coro Internazionale Lirico Sinfonico, like other choral ensembles, had to suspend every activity in order to obey to the new restrictions. To ease this situation of great tension, we have decided to open the doors of our virtual rehearsal rooms, so that each singer comes closer to each other through music. And if it’s true that the “Chorus of the Hebrew slaves”, commonly known as “Va’ pensiero”, in the circumstances of Giuseppe Verdi’s time was a reflection of the oppression inflicted on the Italian people before Italy’s reunification, picturing the Jews people in chains under Babylonian captivity, today we feel close to that sentiment of lost homeland and loss of freedom to live our life peacefully. The “Va pensiero” is a part of our history, and as soon as anyone begins singing the motif the words come back to mind. The hymn has always been considered a potential substitute to the national anthem, and according to many scholars no other pieces can truly represent the Italian people like the “Va pensiero”.
The people that gives us hope today
A big thanks to all the medical personnel currently involved in the fight against the Covid-19 emergency. This video is for you! We are thankful to the #Caritas of Villa Glori (Rome) that allows the IOC to rehearse in a non virtual environment. A big hug to all its guests and staff working there… #EverythingWillBeOK! Thanks to M° Giovanni Mirabile, to all the singers #IOC that participated and to the creative team behind the scenes: Paolo Annunziato – Mixing engineer e video editor; Raffaella Baioni – Project manager; Giovanni Marucci – President of the Association "Frequenze&Armonici" Virginia Cirillo – Content creator.
Please click on the image to listen to Verdi's "Va Pensiero" from the Nabucco
