The XXXV Edition of Musicultura Festival, directed by Ezio Nannipieri, saw the overall victory of Anna Castiglia. The young Sicilian singer-songwriter won over the public with the song “Ghali”, obtaining the Banca Macerata Prize of 20,000 euros and the Prize for the best text of 2,000 euros from the Universities of Macerata and Camerino. Castiglia dedicated her victory to her music history teacher at the Conservatory, Ernesto Assante, and announced that she will donate part of the prize to pro-Palestine associations.
Anna Castiglia, 25 years old, originally from Catania, is a classical guitar student at the Giuseppe Verdi Conservatory in Milan and co-founder of the Canta Fino a Dieci project, a feminist singer-songwriter collective that fights the gender gap in the musical world. Her first album is expected to be released in September.
Eugenio Sournia, with the song “Il cielo”, received the Critics’ Plaque named after Piero Cesanelli, worth 3,000 euros, and the PMI Award for the best recording project, worth 2,000 euros.
The Other Finalists
In addition to Anna Castiglia and Eugenio Sournia, the other finalists of the Festival were:
- Nico Arezzo of Ragusa with the song “Nicareddu”
- De.Stradis of Bologna with “Paintings by artists”
- Nyco Ferrari of Milan with “I’m made like this”
- Bianca Frau of Sassari with “Everything is fine”
- Helle of Bologna with “Lisou”
- The Snookers of Morbegno with “Guai”
Helle received a special prize of 2,000 euros with the song “Lisou”, awarded by a jury of prisoners from the Barcaglione prison in Ancona, as part of a cultural integration initiative promoted by the Guarantor of Human Rights of the Marche Region , Giancarlo Giulianelli.
Final evenings with many guests
The final evenings, held in the splendid setting of the Sferisterio of Macerata, were hosted by Paola Turci and Carolina Di Domenico. Turci, in her debut as co-host, gave the audience memorable performances, including Guccini’s “L’avelenata”. Together with the eight finalists, she sang “La casa riva al mare” by Lucio Dalla.
Notable Guests
During the evenings, numerous artists took to the stage, including Diodato, who opened the first evening with “Fai rumore”, the winning song of the 2020 Sanremo Festival, and also performed “Che vita marvelous” and “La mia terra” .
Polish guitarist Marcin Patrzalek impressed the audience with his rendition of the “Habanera” from Bizet’s Carmen, Led Zeppelin’s “Kashmir” and Bach’s “Toccata and Fugue in D minor”. Serena Brancale presented her single “Stu cafè” as a national preview and reinterpreted songs by Tullio De Piscopo and Pino Daniele. Filippo Graziani paid homage to his father Ivan with an emotional performance of his best-known songs, including “Lugano addio” and “Pigro”.
Alessandra Campedelli, coach of the Iranian and Pakistan women’s national volleyball teams, shared her experience of using sport as a tool for social transformation to improve the condition of women.
Memorable Conclusion
The grand final saw a performance by Nada, who enchanted the audience with songs such as “Senza un questo” and “Luna in fiore”. Carlotta Proietti paid homage to Gabriella Ferri with “Il waltz della toppa”, duetting with Paola Turci in “Tanto pe’ canta’”.
Enzo Avitabile closed the festival with an overwhelming performance, performing songs such as “Don salvatò” and “Aizamm na mana”, accompanied by the percussion of Bottari di Portico. Avitabile received the Honor for High Artistic Merit from the University of Macerata and the University of Camerino.
Awards and Media Coverage
Alessandro Bianchi brought the character of Lesc Dubrov to the stage, while the evening was broadcast live on Rai Radio 1, with interventions by Marcella Sullo, Duccio Pasqua and John Vignola. Rai, the main media partner, covered the event with live broadcasts and insights on various channels, including Rai 2, TgR, Rainews24, and Rai Italia.
The final evenings of Musicultura will be broadcast on Rai 2 on 15 July, directed by Duccio Forzano, and will be broadcast across the five continents by Rai Italia.
