A cold, dark November night was imbued with warmth and exuberance during Italian Medieval Night, part of Downtown Binghamton’s First Friday events.
Held in the University Downtown Center, the hum of conversation and smell of antipasto and a pasta dinner introduced the night as one for camaraderie and sharing the sounds of a culture. Seats were filled with students and community members alike, all there to listen to the music of Nino Samiani and Andrea Di Cesare, world-renowned rock and pop Italian violinists. Anticipation for a cozy night of music led to chattering about the artists and hopes for what might be performed.
Programs were provided with the Italian lyrics and English translations all written out, encouraging audience participation. As Samiani, a musician local to the Endicott area, performed well-loved songs, the room filled with not only his singing, but the voices of community members. From older Italian singers like Domenico Modugno and Louis Prima, to more contemporary artists like Ed Sheeran and Andrea Bocelli’s version of “Perfect Symphony,” this performance welcomed audiences of all ages and cultures to enjoy the romantic language of Italy.
Dana Stewart, an associate professor of romance languages and literature and collegiate professor of Mountainview College, has been working at BU for 30 years. In that time, she has invited Samiani to perform multiple times.
“I love it when he does the sing-along songs that involve the crowd,” Stewart said. “I also just loved looking out at the crowd. There are a lot of Italian Americans in this area, a lot of people with Italian heritage and a lot of people who knew a lot of the songs he was singing. So to look out in the crowd and see so many people humming along, singing along with some of the words, that was a really exciting moment for me — of feeling like I’ve been able to help bring about this evening of celebrating Italian culture together.”
After a brief intermission, it was time to hear Di Cesare’s original composition. Di Cesare, featured on 20 platinum and gold records, has performed at Binghamton before and was particularly taken with the dedication to the University’s study of medieval Italian literature. In this small corner of New York, he had a special performance planned — the world premiere of a multi-part composition based on Dante’s “Divine Comedy.”
So began the “Inferno,” the first part of this composition. Introduced by a backtrack of howling winds and screeching instruments, the suffering of Dante’s characters exiled to eternal damnation was translated into orchestral movements. The programs provided at the beginning of the show allowed audience members to read along with the Italian spoken recitation of Dante’s writing, along with the English translation.
As Di Cesare played his violin through the “Inferno,” into “Purgatorio” and “Paradiso,” clear transitions were made. “Purgatorio” brought transitions from low to high, emphasizing the quick fluttering of hope within the souls Dante encounters on his journey. The high, smooth notes of “Paradiso” communicate the sensation of arriving at Heaven and learning about love.
The final movement of the piece, however, was based on just two lines at the end of the poem, explained by Stewart as the moment in which Dante the character joins with Dante the poet and gains the ability to write about his travels, which “The Divine Comedy” is about. This section rounded out the circle of the journey, bringing the night of music to an end in a very whole and satisfying way.
Sam Corradetti, a second-year Ph.D. student studying English, expressed their emotions after the performances by Samiani and Di Cesare.
“You can really feel the emotion in his work,” Corradetti said. “You can feel the care in his work. I think in particular the final section. The fourth section that’s based on the end of the ‘Paradiso’ canto, where he just took two or three lines of Dante and just interpreted, literally interpreted, the whole universe kind of being pulled into Earth. And you felt that.”
The end of Medieval Italian Night came about joyfully in Downtown Binghamton, with community members having experienced a bit more of their culture and students learning about the Italian language and history. The autumn chill that had been locked out of UDC through swirls of harmonies and captivating violin solos felt less sharp as folks left the building and entered into the first weekend of November.