With the subtitle “The essential is invisible to the eyes… the music speaks” the third edition of La festa della musica, curated by the Massese association La rivincita, is on the starting blocks. Presenting the event entitled “The first orchestra is us”, which will be held at Villa Cuturi, in Marina di Massa on Friday 21 June at 9pm, were the president of the La Rivincita association, Carmen Federico, the president of province Gianni Lorenzetti, the regional councilor Giacomo Bugliani and the prefect Dr. Guido Aprea. A series of dance and music performances will alternate on the natural ‘stage’ of the Villa Cuturi staircase, performing songs and choreographies inspired by the 80s, with local and non-local artists and with a guest of honor from that era was a true icon: Viola Valentino. Above all it will be a show focused on inclusion because among the artists who will perform there are also the kids from the Oltr3 company from Carrara which includes young people with all types of disabilities. The event, which has the artistic direction of Benedetta Spagnoli and Maurizio Borghetti, will be presented by Carmen Federico and Valentina Rosso and will have Viola Valentino as guest of honor. The Arts & Musical School of Lara and Morena Maggiani, Des’art Danza of Alex Bordigoni and Elena Giarratana, Oltr3 Compagnia Danza Integrata will participate. The media partners are Luca Corradini’s Radio Montestella and Aldo Grandi’s La Gazzetta di Massa Carrara. The event is sponsored by the European Commission, the Ministry of Culture, the Department for Youth Policies and Universal Civil Service, AIPFM, the Tuscany Region, the Province of Massa Carrara and the municipality of Massa.
“I am proud to have brought the Music Festival project to Massa – said the lawyer Carmen Federico, curator of the event – because it is a project that is submitted to the Ministry of Culture every year, and I am honored to present it this year because it has a particular slant: with the La Rivincita association we have always cultivated cultural and social themes and for the third edition of the Music Festival we decided to enhance disability and equal opportunities. I came to live in Massa about five years ago and I am now a citizen of Massa in all respects. Mine was a choice of both personal and professional courage and it wasn’t easy. During the lockdown, which I lived here, the idea of the La Rivincita association was born with which to highlight the many excellences that this province can offer and that I discovered while living here. I therefore thank the institutions that are essential and that are protagonists of all our initiatives and I remember that we are a non-profit association that finances itself. For this edition of the Music Festival I wanted to involve my writer friend Manola Caribotti who will have a space to involve children, for whom Valentina Maria Basile will also be there, the little girl who sang the song Miss Spazzolino at the last Zecchino d’ gold. With the artistic director Maurizio Borghetti we then called a series of young artists from the local music scene and also from other cities who will perform on our stage: Simona Galli, Piero ShehuKuqo, Anna Borghetti, Chiara Tedde, Ginevra Mantovani, Joao Carrera, Jamax , Sal Mediterraneo and Benedetta Spagnoli, who also collaborated with Alex Bordigoni for the dance performances”.
Prefect Aprea declared: “As an institution in the security sector, we have long used the infinite resources of the La Rivincita association and collaborated with the president Carmen Federico for the attention they give to issues such as gender violence and the social emergency. I can testify to the gravity of these fragile realities by recalling the many reports of problems relating to these topics that come to my table every day. These are problems with very deep roots, so it is essential that there are organizations that talk about them and that are able to prevent them by involving people in a concrete way, as the La Rivincita association does. This year’s Music Festival with the involvement of a company of disabled dancers is particularly significant because it places disability in a context of celebration for all and does not relegate it to an event for a limited circle. I therefore thank the lawyer Federico for his constant voluntary activity based on facts and not just words”. The President of the Province Gianni Lorenzetti recalled how the experience of the La Rivincita project started from the municipality of Saronno to spread throughout Italy and the fact that the Province of Massa Carrara has always been sensitive to its path as well as that of the Music Festival , which today is celebrated in 120 countries around the world: “It celebrates the summer solstice – explained Lorenzetti – and conveys important messages through music. The lawyer Federico wanted to enhance disability in this edition because together with gender violence and education on legality it is one of the main topics covered by La Rivincita. Obviously we couldn’t help but support her. Today important patronages have been added but we believed in it when the project was still unknown. For this reason we willingly granted free use of Villa Cuturi for the event.”
“The music festival is one of the events that Carmen Federico gives to the city of Massa in her important cultural volunteering activity which is now a basic support for public administrations. Especially for the culture sector which is based on the contribution of associations, capable of truly making a difference. The Music Festival is particular because it blends culture and social development of the territory: this edition combines music and the theme of disability is very important because it is a vehicle of ideal values and progress that occurs in a very pleasant way, capable of entering into the most intimate chords of people becoming accessible to all. We are getting used to new generations who do not understand the concepts of commitment and effort to achieve results, which are instead essential to have a role in society. This event is a way to convey good feelings to bring to the community”
Alex Bordigoni is the artistic director of the Oltr3 integrated dance company which involves over 15 young people with intellectual and physical disabilities and also directs the Des’Art dance school, both based in Carrara. With both two realities he will participate in the Music Festival: “The Oltr3 project was born three years ago: we do theatrical dance and theater shows. It all started as a simple integrated dance workshop and then became a company thanks to the potential of dance which brought enormous improvements in the lives and health of the children who participated. We have created a show of true social inclusion that we bring to the stage. For the Music Festival we wanted to go further, and we created choreographies that bring together able-bodied kids with disabled kids to give a clear example of integration. We also finance ourselves and provide the service to disabled children free of charge. The costs are high but the potential is very great so we believe it is right to invest. We hope that the project can grow more and more.”
“I am happy to have had an important role in contact with the artists of Alex Bordigoni’s schools. It is also important that this occasion offers them the opportunity to meet and interact with personalities from the world of entertainment and with the public because it allows them to better understand their passion. It is a great opportunity to have disabled people perform because it improves their lives and is important lessons for everyone to feel better. The singers who participate will perform their unreleased songs and then also do a piece from the 80s revisited by them.”
