“Recreating the world” in Colognole di Pontassieve (Florence, IT)

RECREATING THE WORLD
Meeting and concert

January 11th, 2024
Circolo Culturale Contadino di Colognole
Colognole di Pontassieve (Florence, IT)

Organised by La Leggera APS, as part of the Creative Europe Tramontana IV project

As part of the activities of the Research Centre and L.A.S.C.I.T.O. (La Leggera Social Archive on the Intangible Culture of East Tuscany) Viola Arinci has just defended a thesis at the University of Turin: ‘Recreating the world. Le cantamaggio du Mugello: An ethnopgraphic (and autoethnographic) analysis on the maggiaioli of Pieve de Borgo San Lorenzo group practices’. On the evening and night of April 30th every year, all along the Apennine ridge, numerous groups of maggiaioli/maggerini perform a ritual of lyrical begging, each with songs specific to the occasion. Even the Tuscan region of Mugello (Florence) still preserves this tradition. Viola Arinci’s thesis captures the complexity of the experiences and meanings that members of one of the oldest and most active groups continue to attribute to this ancient tradition. The occasion also saw the participation of a young group of musicians: ‘L’orchestrina del Progresso’, with a dance concert.