Starry night: Italian music takes crowd to moon and back

Event endeavours to promote cultural exchange between Italy and Pakistan

KARACHI: Tintarella di luna, tintarella color latte

tutta notte sopra il tetto

sopra al tetto come i gatti

e se c'è la luna piena tu diventi candida

[She got a moon tan, she got a milk-coloured tan

All night long on the roof

On the roof just like a cat does

And if there is a full moon, you get even more charming]

The Italian song Tintarella di Luna [Moon Tan] by Mina, which brings out the beauty of moonlight, was one of the songs which National Academy of Performing Arts (Napa) students and alumni performed as an ode to the moon.

To promote cultural exchange, the consulate general of Italy based in Karachi invited people to get an essence of Italian music by joining hands with Napa.

The students performed Italian songs and poems, focusing on the image of the moon during the event, titled 'Dedicato alla luna: Italian songs and poems on the Moon', held at Napa Auditorium on Saturday night.

The songs and poetry gripped the audiences making it one of the most memorable nights for them. The participants did not have to be Italian or understand the language as the performances struck a chord with everyone, binding them with their mystical spell. The enthusiasm with which Napa's students and alumni sang the songs and recited poems added to the charm of the performances. The night also gave an insight into the amount of talent that lies in Pakistan.

The performances that stood out were Tintarella di Luna [Moon Tan] sung by Areeba Niazi, Luna per Te [Moon for You] by Vasco Rossi was sung by Shehzad, Mare Luna [Sea Moon] by Pino Daniele sung by Nigel, Gurda che Luna [Look at the Moon] by Fred Buscaglione sung by Hyder Chao and Le dodici Lune [Twelve Moons]' by Angelo Branduardi performed in chorus by Napa students.

In between the songs, students also performed on famous Italian poems, whose translations in Urdu were also recited.

The performance was recited and choreographed by Kashif Hussain. The three poems recited were La Luna rimarra' la Luna [The moon will be the Moon] by Giuseppe Ungaretti and Alla Luna [To the Moon] and Inno alla Luna [Hymn to the Moon] by Giacomo Leopardi.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 19^th, 2016.