Pivari Trio and Compagnia del Maggio di Frassinoro
This collaboration mixes delicacy of execution with an earthy authenticity. The songs here consist of sacred chants and liturgical music collected in northern Italy, mixed with secular dance music of the region. Pagan and sacred share the stage as polkas, waltzes and schottisches are interspersed between verses of the church music. The songs are arranged according to the solar year, beginning with the epiphany and running through Christmas. The eight-minute-plus "Maggio drammatico (Dramatic May)" is a rendition of an ancient pagan form of popular theater. The plays took on religious context in later years.
The Pivari Trio plays crisply and with joyous abandon on folk instruments such as recorder, ocarina, melodeon, bagpipe, and hurdy-gurdy. The five male vocalists from the Compagnia del Maggio di Frassinoro have rich, operatic voices that they use to warm and ardent effect in solo or choral arrangements. It's an effective pairing and a warm, accessible invitation to an ancient but robust tradition. - Peggy Latkovich
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