On October 17, Nitra Castle became the place of a unique concert where the sounds of medieval Italian music were heard. The main organizer of the cultural event, which took place on the occasion of the 23rd Week of the Italian Language in the World, was the Embassy of the Italian Republic in Slovakia in cooperation with the Italian Cultural Institute, the Diocese of Nitra and the Department of Romance and German Studies of the Faculty of Arts of Constantine the Philosopher University in Nitra.

The musical event was attended by the Ambassador of the Italian Republic to Slovakia H.E. Catherine Flumiani, Rector of Constantine the Philosopher University in Nitra, prof. RNDr. Libor Vozár, CSc., Vice-rector for International Relations, doc. PhDr. Martina Pavlíková, PhD., Head of the Department of Romance and German Studies, prof. PhDr. Eva Stranovská, PhD., and other representatives of the academic community of our university as well as the general public.

This year, as part of the 23rd Week of the Italian Language in the World, the journey continues in the footsteps of old Italian music which presents the melodious tones of the Middle Ages performed by the musical group Murmur Mori, founded by connoisseurs of medieval music and literature Mirko Volpe and Silvia Kuro in Bologna in 2015. The study of traditional Italian music led them to discover the wealth of regional expressions and dialects, still alive in Italy today, and allowed them to go back in time to the 12th and 13th century. The group Murmur Mori set to music the found medieval manuscripts and traces of the folk music tradition from the 12th century, bringing to life the stories of the first poets, troubadours, performers using the folk language.

The ensemble performs only acoustically and during the concert they used faithful replicas of instruments made according to iconography from the 13th and 14th century in order to offer the listeners an authentic experience and to capture the atmosphere of that period as authentically as possible.

In St. Emerams Cathedral at Nitra Castle the following musicians performed:

 

The musical performance was dedicated to the various forms of folk language that were spoken, rhymed, written and sung on the Apennine Peninsula in the Middle Ages, with texts set to music by troubadours and itinerant singers.

We express our thanks to H.E. Viliam Judák, who made this concert possible in the cathedral premises, as well as to H.E. Catherine Flumiani, who mediated the cooperation of the Department of Romance and German Studies of the Faculty of Arts of our university with the Italian Cultural Institute. We believe that the cooperation with the Italian Cultural Institute in Bratislava will continue successfully and will follow up on this cultural event.

 

Text: Assoc. Prof. PhDr. Martina Pavlíková, PhD., Vice-rector for international relations
Photo and video: Archive of Martina Pavlíková
English translation: Ing. Katarína Butorová, PhD.

 

Posted: October 27, 2023