2023-06-02 09:00:00
Time.news – A concert for piano and voice, surrounded by hundreds of candles lit on the floor, in the marvelous setting offered by the Baths of Caracalla: Fiorella Mannoia and Danilo Rea, kicked off “Luce”, a show that will go on tour touching different Italian locations, from June 1st to September 2nd. A exquisite concertof which Rome had its first taste, with the singer taking the stage in a red evening dress, wearing high heels after a short while to continue barefoot and be more comfortable, accompanied by Rea, a pianist of indisputable talent who delighted the audience for twenty minutes before the entry of Mannoia with a medley of singer-songwriter hits revisited in a jazz key.
In almost two hours, the artists created an extraordinary partnership, giving life to a live piano-voice that allowed both to express their full talent without the support of other musical instruments. A show that will be a real “gem” for this summer 2023. An intimate concert, which seals the encounter between pop and jazz. “I have known Danilo for over 30 years – said the Roman singer – we are friends, we met on stage. We decided to join our alchemy since we’ve always been in tune and from here, the idea of this show was born”.
Why is it called “Light”? “On stage there are candles, the piano and us – Mannoia explained again – we wanted to create atmosphere with the bare minimum and we thought that by taking everything away, the candles would underline this uniqueness“. “It’s a way to give a dreamlike sense to everything – added Rea- through the essentiality of voice and piano. There are musical genres that need a lot of support. But a dimension like ours, intimate, did not need further embellishments”. Mannoia and Rea have interpreted songs from their repertoire and songs of a songwriting nature that they are fond of.
”For me – said Mannoia – a song of the heart is ‘Margherita’. A text that Cocciante does not sing with anyone. And that instead I was lucky enough to play once with him. And then, I sang it at the beginning of my career, participating in a broadcast with a race, and it all started from there”. And the love that Mannoia has for this song, all came out at the moment of interpretation: the first part she sang only in voice, in absolute silence, to then continue with the support of the piano.
Voice and piano also for “La donna cannone”, for a tribute to Franco Battiato with “La Cura”, to Lucio Dalla with “Felicità”, to Lucio Battisti and his “And I think of you”, Paolo Conte with “Via con myself”. And then classics such as “Sulo pè parlà”, “Besame mucho” and “Quizas Quizas”, “Messico e Nuvole”, up to highly successful songs for Mannoia such as “Quello che le donne non dire”, “Come si cambia”, “The doubts of love” and the beautiful interpretation that the singer gives of “Sally”, by Vasco Rossi.
“We – said Mannoia again – we are the demonstration that pop and jazz can meet. Danilo had no arrogance against pop and vice versa”. The lineup is open, “sometimes we’ll change – explained the artists – I don’t know, maybe we’ll start collaborations as we go to various squares. If it happens”. “We play the songs of our life – said Rea – Every time we have done so we have entered a magical atmosphere, full of emotion, perhaps because we know that each concert will be different from the next”.
At the end of the Rome date there is also space for “Che sia benedetta”, a song from San Remo sung by Mannoia, written by the singer-songwriter Amara who took the stage at the Baths of Caracalla to interpret it together. And speaking of Sanremo, when asked for a new participation in the Festival, Mannoia does not hold back but clarifies that at the moment he is not thinking about it: “It’s not now in my projects, if a good song comes out, the right one, then let’s see” .
A new TV show? “ We have many ideas, I’m available to make others of course, if they allow me the freedom we had in calling whoever I wanted and on the topics I wanted to discuss. So, in that case why not?”. Space also for social-themed initiatives such as “One, No, One Hundred Thousand”: “We are thinking of going back to doing something. It seems clear to me that there is a need for it”, said Fiorella Mannoia, “We don’t want that event to remain a sporadic event – added the singer – we have ideas and projects in this regard. There will be news”.
And on the concert for Emilia Romagna the answer leaves no room for replies: “It was right to do so. We could not abandon our compatriots who have suffered. I remember that with the initiative ‘One, No One and One Hundred Thousand in Campo Volo, we have raised more than two million euros. So it’s done. It will be a drop in the ocean but it can’t be avoided,” concluded the singer.
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