Tandarandan: Èpata, la musica delle stagioni
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Tandarandan
Èpata: la musica delle stagioni
Folk Club Ethnosuoni (www.folkclubethnosuoni.com/)

This is a very folksy disc from this Northern Italian octet. With twelve songs, one for each month of the year, each time of the year (feasts, harvests) is represented by a traditional song. One semi-exception, March's entry, is a first-rate Maurizio Cavalli composition about Guido Pietro Gherardi, a quarryman in marble, who led a famous 1894 demonstration against the government. The demonstration was attacked by the army and our poor quarryman died in prison, but is remembered in this prog-folk hymn to freedom. That song is probably the closest nod to the current era on the disc. By contrast, on "L'Orazione del prole pia," a nice mix of traditional instruments and lovely harmonies tells an ancient story. May's entry includes a May Day March, a hymn to work or "Inno del Lavoro," and sounds like a village brass band marching down the main street.

listen There is also variety. "La Bella" is a minor-key ballad of Tuscan origin, featuring fine female vocals, nice percussion and violin. "Moresca" has some lively percussion and organetto. Another, similar organetto-based song is "La pesca dell'anello."

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Other sounds are on offer, as well. "Polca dell orbo ­ Scott del Bricca ­ Marcia di Viggion," the entry for September, starts as something akin to a French Canadian reel, and perhaps owes a bit to early La Bottine Souriante. "Pifferata di Don Bellentani" harkens to a Bach fugue, with Marco Montanelli's church organ paying homage to a 19th century musician.

At times Tandarandan is trying to re-create an older sound, at times they create something new. It's a nice mix and a very likeable, somewhat quirky collection that rewards repeated listening. The notes are colorful and the music well-explained in Italian and English, but no lyrics to the songs. - David Cox

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