Le Canzoni Dell‘ Onorata Società
La Musica Della Mafia Vol. III (2005)
02. Parlato I [MP3-snippet]
03. E Fua chiamatu [MP3-snippet]
04. Innocente carcerato
05. Cantu i l’emigranti
06. Musulinu galantomu [MP3-snippet]
07. Amuri e carceri
08. Pizzicarella malinconica
09. Era na sira i Maggiu [MP3-snippet]
10. Parlato II
11. Infama Vinditta
12. Penseri / Instrumental
13. Pani e rispettu a li travagghjaturi
14. Vendetta d’onuri
15. Parlato III
16. Incatenatu
17. Nta nu giardinu di rosi e sciuri
18. Tarantella di li tarantelli
19. E lu processu
20. Mi votu e mi rivotu
21. Ammazzaru lu Generali [MP3-snippet]
22. Tarantella alla pizzicarola / Instrumental
Honor is embodied in the dance of the Picciotti
Text accompanying the release of ‘Le Canzoni Dell’ Onorata Societá’
Following the presentation of part one of the trilogy "La Musica della Mafia" five years ago, its extraordinary success exceeded the expectations of its initiators. Originally planned for distribution in German-speaking countries, the CD with songs of the Calabrian Mafia soon became a highly popular export. Immense press coverage resounded practically throughout the world and the circumstances of this particular music called for much explanation. Question as to its authenticity fascinated both journalists and purchasers.
This CD completes the trilogy "La Musica della Mafia". Once again, beautifully traditional and in part shockingly uninhibitedly recited songs from the world of the Calabrian Mafia, the N´drangheta, have been collected. However, this final publication in the series differs from its predecessors through surprising new dimensions in music and lyrics.
It is the mysterious sound of a Jew’s harp that leads us into the world the songs traditionally sung and played within the “Codice Serpentino” (code of the snake).
In the song titled E Fua Chimatu, a new man of honour presents himself before the round of the "Onorata Società". He proudly declares his ambition to follow the will of the "society" to his dying day.
The lyrics of numbers 4,5, and 7 evoke feelings that have not yet been touched on in the previous CDs: love and freedom.
Hence the lament of the prisoner in L'Innocente Carcerato, who yearns for a life in freedom. Or the man of honour in Canzuni ill’Emigranti, who sets out "into the wide world" but desires nothing more than to return to his "Bella", and never to leave again. In Amuri e Carceri, a condemned man writes a letter to his wife from prison, using his own blood in lack of ink. However, she fails to visit him...
This collection combines the most tender and human with the most brutal and criminal of songs from the repertory of the “Canzoni della 'Ndrangheta” (Songs of the Calabrian Mafia).
Infama Vinditta describes one of the numerous and bloodthirsty murders in the battle between the "new" and the "old" Mafia in the nineteen-eighties. The revenge of a woman on a man who refused to marry her after his involvement with her, thus robbing her of her honour, is the theme of Vinditta d'Onuri. Recordings with female vocals are very rare among the songs of the Mafia. In this case, the bitter despair of the protagonist surpasses the intensity of similar male interpretations.
The song “Pani e Rispettu alli Travagghiaturi” is sung and played by the locally renowned musician Orazio Strano from Catania. The more than 14-minute piece meticulously relates the social conditions under which the poverty-stricken population of eastern Sicily lived following World War II. The Mafia in Calabria emerged from destitute peasants and shepherds. With songs like this, the Mafia took influence on election campaigns and supported the Communist Party. The communists promised to give them farmland, instead of their toiling as labourers to the squires.
The last song on the CD shows the end of emotion in the songs of the Mafia: in “Ammazzaru lu Generali”, the atrocious assassination of the police chief of Palermo, General Carlo Alberto Dalla Chiesa, in 1982 is recapitulated. By the time he was killed, he had been in office and engaged in fighting the Mafia for no longer than three months, a fact that led to his being referred to as the "100-day chief".
The “Canzoni della 'Ndrangheta” are very popular among most Mafiosi, the stories related in them at times reflecting the lives of today’s "Men of Honour". Some of them listen to this music exclusively and are passionate dancers of the Tarantella.
In the south of Calabria, the "original Tarantella" or the "Tarantella under command" is still practised. The "Master of the Dance" (today the most charismatic man of the town, formerly the Mafia boss) has the authority to decide when the dance is opened and who is to dance with whom. This ceremony sets a great emphasis on respect and reinforces the strength of local social relationships.
Listening to this music makes many elderly Southern Italians wistfully relive memories of earlier times, and it cannot be denied that many romanticize a past that was indeed violent. In speaking of this music’s significance to the regional population, it is important to point out that it has an additional function for a particular group of listeners. It serves many young Mafiosi as a “stimulant”. The values and the message communicated through the music – most importantly the concept of obtaining honor and respect through criminal exploits – are put forth as validation for the crimes they commit. This is a danger embodied in the “Musica della Mafia” that should not remain unmentioned.
