Wednesday 28th December in Praiano a new appointment dedicated to Christmas melodies with the concert “THEY STOPPED THE HEAVENS”. In the Church of San Gennaro, at 7.30 pm, the songs related to the Neapolitan nativity scene – and among these the very famous “Quante nascette ninno” and “Fermarono i cielo” will be interpreted by the fascinating voice of Peppe Servillo and the sounds of Ambrogio Sparagna and his musicians . Many curious and ancient musical instruments including a giant bagpipe, a model of extraordinary proportions (it is almost 2 meters high) which spread throughout the Kingdom of Naples starting from the end of the 18th century in order to accompany the typical repertoire of spiritual songs. All combined with splendid voices to evoke together a unique atmosphere of great emotional intensity.
The show
Around the middle of the eighteenth century Alfonso Maria de’ Liguori, founder of the order of the Redemptorist Fathers, began to accompany his pastoral work among the poor of the Kingdom of Naples with the practice of some spiritual songs composed both in dialect and in Italian. These were songs with a simple structure, which drew melodic cues from popular themes, with which the missionary taught the “lazarians” the foundations of Catholicism, making them protagonists of liturgical rituals through the creation of special prayer groups (evening chapels).
Many songs were linked to the cycle of the Christmas holidays and among these the very famous “You come down from the stars“, “How many births Ninno“, “They stopped the skies“, others to Marian devotion. In short, this repertoire spread throughout the Kingdom becoming the protagonist of the many rituals of the liturgical cycle, especially the Christmas and Marian ones. The success of these spiritual songs favored the development of a very large repertoire in the popular sphere of religious folk songs that are still widely used throughout the country.
The show They stopped the Heavens proposes some of these popular religious songs and others specially composed by Ambrogio Sparagna entrusting them to the highly original interpretation of Peppe Servillo and a group of popular instruments including a giant bagpipe, a model of extraordinary proportions (it is almost two meters high) which spread throughout the kingdom of Naples starting from the end of the eighteenth century precisely for the purpose of accompanying the typical repertoire of spiritual songs.
Other upcoming events
Tuesday 27th Decemberat the “Andrea Pane” Cultural Center, the text will be presented CHARLES DARWIN– Man, his great journey and the theory of evolution (by John Van Wyhe). In this book the author summarizes 25 years of research into the life of the famous scientist: from his expedition aboard the Beagle, to his famous research on the Galápagos Islands, up to his marriage, his illness, the publication of his revolutionary writings, more of all The Origin of Species in 1859.
The professor. Robert Sandulli (Professor of Zoology and Marine Biology at the Parthenope University of Naples), who edited the Italian edition, will tell us how Charles Darwin revolutionized our way of understanding life on Earth and our place in nature.
29 December and Thursday 5 January 2023, it will be the turn of the young citizens of Praiano who, with the Idea Live aps theater company of Salerno, will embark on a journey, with three fairy-tale shows, from the imaginary world of Alice in Wonderland, the Little Prince and the characters of an imaginative and modern Living nativity scene, nowadays. Moments of “educational fun”, but at the same time the actors will help them learn to never lose their fantasy and imagination.
Sunday January 1stthe first day of the new year, the Praiano population will gather in the church of San Gennaro for the usual New Year’s Grand Concert: Viennese waltzes arranged by Maestro Giovanni Vuolo and masterfully interpreted by the award-winning concert band “Città di Minori”.
Saturday 7 January the Christmas program will end with the A “paranza do tramuntan”: the joy and euphoria of the first days of the year sung and danced to the notes of Campania and coastal folk songs, punctuated by typical instruments (tammorre, accordion, accordion, castanets, putipù, bagpipes and shawm).
This year, Christmas decorations are all about saving energy. The lights are powered by 100% solar energy thanks to a photovoltaic panel that recharges the internal batteries, which release energy to turn on the lights once the sun has set.
The event Praiano’s Christmas is made by Municipality of Praianoin collaboration with thePelagos Associationthe associations present in the area and the parishes under the patronage of Amalfi Coast Tourist District.
Participation in all events is free and free