Ispica – The Art evolution Association presents “Lost Horizons”, a tribute to Franco Battiato by the “Guarnieri ensemble” which will be held on 13 August at 20.30 in the splendid setting of the Loggiato del Sinatra in front of the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Ispica, one of the most beautiful and rich in history of our Sicily, chosen not by chance.
It was here that Franco Battiato shot his first film “Perduto amor”, the main theme of which is his autobiographical story which earned him the conferral of the honorary citizenship of Ispica.
Creator of this event, Maestro Giuseppe Guarnieri: «We wanted to pay a moving and sincere homage to the one who did not like to be called a teacher and to celebrate his life, works, music, art and thought. The “Lost Horizons” project is a journey back in time, a musical and narrative journey that, overcoming gravitational currents, makes Franco Battiato’s unique and unmistakable artistic essence vibrate. Taking a cue from the album of the same name where the autobiographical theme of memory is intertwined with the critique of the Western world. The show travels on two fluctuating tracks between the story of the decisive and turning point of his artistic career and the pieces, the musical compositions that have marked it and then flowed into spiritual research ».
“Lost Horizons” is the third tribute to the late artist. In fact, last year Art evolution presented “Mondi distanissimi” a show-concert that was one of the flagships of the “Etna on stage” festival held in Zafferana Etnea. And precisely on this occasion Guarnieri had pointed out that “Mondi distanissimi” was somehow the renewed version of “Invito al viaggio”, a show born in 2016 to pay homage to Franco Battiato living and that for 5 years was toured for the whole Sicily.
The protagonists, in addition to Maestro Guarnieri, pianist, will be: the actor and musician Alessandro Romano (guitar and voice), the masters Teresa Lombardo (1 violin), Nadia Tidona (2 violin), Jascha Parisi (cello) and the actor and narrator Giovanni Peligra.
“We will start from 1983 – explains Giovanni Peligra – the year of publication of” Lost Horizons “poetic and suggestive, one of Battiato’s most intimate albums. The constant theme is the confrontation between a modern society guilty of having removed man from contact with himself On the one hand, Milan, an alienating metropolitan reality where Franco had now lived for 18 years and which he had been thinking of leaving for some time, and Sicily, his magical homeland, a destination to be rediscovered and rediscovered. The more loneliness in society increases, the more it becomes. music becomes indispensable for him.
Then we will move on to the futuristic “Distant Worlds”, from 1985, a colorful fresco of how the most advanced man who rises with his intelligence and who challenges nature with the undisputed strength of science has reached and conquered the stars. 1978, a watershed in the life and career of Franco Battiato in which musical experimentation ends and the artist works on the so-called pop trilogy. In the 70s his musical expression was carried out through sophisticated sound materials, research, or in any case not very popular . Then he began to use a direct language made up of songs that are often enthralling and catchy, but always refined and ironic. In 1988 “Fisiognomica” is a decisive shift towards moments of spirituality: for the first time delicate and profound topics such as the search for the sacred they are faced without shame, with simplicity and poetry at the same time, the melodies are refined and not easy to listen to “.
In short, narrative passages accompanied by a rich musical background where songs such as “Permanent center of gravity” Cuccuruccucu “,” The season of love “,” La cura “and many other hits will find their place.