DOMENICA MUSICALE

I knew of this Eros song, but not that he had sung it with Pavarotti. When I heard it on the radio last week, I was moved to tears:

Eros Ramazzotti e Luciano Pavarotti - Se bastase una canzone

DOMENICA MUSICALE - SANREMO 2017

Throughout this post, I shall be posting links rather than videos as there are no official clips, as yet, on youtube, presumably for copyright reasons.

Another Sanremo Festival has come and gone and I've already mentioned one of my favourite moments. Undoubtedly the most touching was the appearance, on the first evening, of representatives of Italy's emergency services and volunteers - including a wonderful labrador -  who had helped in recent disasters such as the 24th August earthquake and the Rigopiano avalanche. The rescuers deservedly got a standing ovation. 

I also enjoyed the appearance of a favourite man of mine, chef and MasterChef Italia judge Carlo Cracco last night. Goodness, Carlo scrubs up well! He had time to tell us that the dish he would choose for presenter Carlo Conti is a Tuscan ribollita and for co-presenter Maria De Filippi spaghetti with tomato sauce, "because it's every Italian's favorite dish." She, lucky girl, got a kiss from chef Carlo, before the other Carlo sent him back to the kitchen.

There couldn't have been a dry eye in the house last night when Zucchero sang a duet with a virtual Luciano Pavarotti and the press dubbed this performance "the real winner."  You can see this here from 01.38.00 mins.

I thought the best song in the whole competition was this one, which was knocked out on the fourth evening and I also liked this and this, both of which made it to the final evening. The winning song was this, ably performed by Francesco Gabbani and a monkey and I can say for it that it certainly cheered everybody up!

PER LA DOTTORESSA DI SCICLI

The beautiful little town of Scicli, a 15-minute drive from Modica, is a community in shock following an horrific crime which took place there on Wednesday - Thursday night: A 53-year-old woman doctor was on duty in the town as that night's guardia medica [emergency doctor] and was alone in the old palazzo where the emergency surgery is located. The building has no video entry system. At around 8.30 pm two North African men arrived at the premises and asked for medicines, which the doctor gave them. The men left but in the early hours one of them returned and rang the doorbell. The doctor saw his silhouette through the glass door and only opened it a fraction in order to talk to him. The man then forced the door open, attacked the doctor violently, raped her and broke her leg. Before fleeing he took the 200 euros that she had in her handbag.

The doctor was admitted to hospital first in Scicli and then in Modica. She was discharged on Thursday evening.

We are all appalled in this normally safe Province of Ragusa as, indeed, are people all over Italy. The Imam of Scicli has called the attack "a crime against man and god" and I can only echo those words. On Wednesday 24th March there will be a torchlight procession in Scicli to show solidarity with the doctor and her family and to say "No" to every form of violence.

I would like to offer this in place of "sabato musicale" tonight. Dottoressa, siamo con Lei. We are with you.

Zucchero e Pavarotti - Va, pensiero

BUON ANNO A TUTTI

Simi and I wish the world peace in 2010.

Luciano Pavarotti & Stevie Wonder - Peace Wanted Just to Be Free

NABUCCO

I've been having terrible trouble with youtube tonight, and would have liked to have been able to get the aria Un giorno sol on as well, but it just won't load. The words of that aria, I think, describe exactly how benevolent you feel towards other lovers when you, yourself, are in love and how painful it is when you "lose that enchantment". Librettists, I believe, receive scant praise! Anyway, you'll have to make do with Va, pensiero. I like this treatment - there is something about the juxtaposition of the classically trained voice and the rougher one of the pop star that touches me and I like Zucchero's take on the words. Va, pensiero was, by the way, a favourite of my Dad's.

A LITTLE CHEER, SOME RELIEF AND SOME SORROW

I hope you can just see that the cute little biscuit on this ice cream from the Altro Posto at lunch time says "Ciao". It cheered me up, anyway, but then, I have a tendency to become inordinately fascinated by such details.

The temperature on the Sacro Cuore thermometer showed a blissfully cool 25 C this afternoon and this evening it's actually cool enough to consider getting out a cardigan!

Everyone's a bit subdued today, thinking of "the people's tenor": Bocelli is to sing at the funeral and the Mayor of Modena has proposed that the town's opera house be renamed for Pavarotti. I visited Modena some years ago and know something of the high regard in which the singer was held in his home town, so it is entirely appropriate that the funeral should take place there. Andrew Allison has a nice tribute on his site.