Concert in the monastery

One of this summer's big events in my Italian hometown was a concert with the "also in the rest of Italy recognized mezzo soprano" Marianna Vinci, who besides being a promising young singer grew up in the area and therefore holds the position of a shining local star. The concert was planned to take place in the local franciscan monastry, and the setup with opera under open sky in a beautiful old monastery garden seemed like too good event to miss.

It turned out to be a truly unforgettable evening. That is, monastry garden was not quite as ancient and romantic as I had imagined. The surroundings were cast in concrete and asphalt 1970s style, but moscito candles had been lit in every window opening and through a door you could catch a glimpse of the suffering Jesus on a crucifix and the monastery's large library.

Attendance by far outnumbered the available seats, the wind played havoc with the pianist's sheet music, and there were problems with the sound. For every ten minutes or so, the monastery’s air conditioning started with a hum that virtually drowned the mayor speech, the conferencie along with numerous children and chatterboxes. Free concerts are free entertainment, so a lot of people did not feel obliged to shut up and listen. It was underlined when the announcer repreatedly urged the audience to respect the fire regulations and turn off their mobile phones. Ring tones were put on silent, but that did not prevent attendants from making calls.

Fortunately, the general unrest did not ruin a beautiful evening, with young girls dancing ballet between songs and a compere who summarized the plot of every opera before the arias. Marianna Vinci sang wonderful excerpts from Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Don Giovanni, Cavalleria Rusticana, Carmen and Samson et Dalila accompanied by Roberto Dante. So there was every reason to thank the sponsors, that is the baker, the hairdresser, the solitary monk in charge of the monastry, a couple of fashion shops and the mayor, so this was done at least five times during the concert and now here. Thank you.

On You Tube you can see Marianna Vinci sing 'O Sole Mio'

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