Noa's concert in Delos (Greece)

"The island of light" by Nicola Piovani in Delos

The island of the god Apollo, Delos, inspired the great Italian composer Nicola Piovani and the result is performed in world premier on Saturday, September 13, 2003, in one and only concert with an unparallel natural background: the breath-taking archaeological site of Delos. The title of the work composed by Piovani and commissioned by the Cultural Olympiad 2001-2004 is "The island of light."

The work of the Opscar awarded composer (for the score of Roberto Begnini's film "Life is beautiful") is a cantata for one narrator, two voices and an ensemble of 15 instruments. The work is based on the myth of Apollo, who was generously gifted by his divine father, Zeus: he was the god of light and music, eternally young, a skillful archer, exceptional athlete and an example of physical beauty.

With the help of the Italian poet Vincenzo Cerami, Piovani set to music extracts from poems by Homer, Callimachus, Lord Byron, Einstein and Dante, among others.

For the performance of Delos, narrator is Greek actor Nikitas Tsakiroglou. Singers are the Israeli Noa and the Italian Pino Ingrosso.

The relation of Nicola Piovani with Greece comes way back. It started in 1979 in Crete, when composer Manos Hadjidakis introduced his young disciple to the audience of the Anogia Festival. Later, Hadjidakis also introduced Piovani to Federico Fellini in order to write the score for the Italian director's films. Starting from there, Piovani became known for his great compositions in cinema music: "Chaos" by the Taviani brothers (1984) and "Life is beautiful" by Roberto Begnini (1997) are certainly two of his works that stand out.

About his work "The island of light, the composer himself had said, during his last visit to the island in June 2003: "This third visit in Delos convinces me that I couldn't have hoped for a better encounter between my music and the natural theater set that will embrace it."

"The island of light, a cantata for voice, instruments and narrator, is the very history of Delos. In the first presentation of this work, the setting communicates in harmony with the music. The audience, as they look around them, will find memories of the mythological matrix that gave birth the primary cantata myths and is dedicated to eternity and timelessness."
HB