Casentuli

The Casentuli offer a wide repertoire of traditional Sicilian music, songs and dances.

The baggage of music and singing in Sicily is linked to the history of this land, which has always been a crossroads of peoples and cultures, representing a synthesis of the different musical expressions that have converged there. The result is an incredibly varied musical universe that ranges from the most archaic sounds of the rural world to the most modern ones of urban contexts: serenades and work songs, agro-pastoral dances performed with cane flutes or bagpipe, and music by country orchestras for mandolin, violin and guitar, constitute an immense intangible heritage that is in danger of being forgotten. They, after years of field research and consultation of ethnomusicological collections, try to keep alive the practice of this unique and fascinating repertoire by proposing it in concerts, in typical dance parties and workshops.

Line Up

Simona Di Gregorio voice, diatonic and chromatic accordion, guitar, tambourine, castanets, dance

Giorgio Maltese mandolin, jew’s harp, bagpipes, diatonic accordion, tambourine, friscaletti, guitar, Sicilian castanets, voice

Pasqualino Cacciola guitar, mandola, mandolin, tambourine, voice

About Us

The Casentuli were formed at the end of 2018 with the aim of recovering and reinterpreting the extensive Sicilian folkloric repertoire with instruments and arrangements as faithful as possible to the performed pieces. From the outset, they embarked on a concert activity in various settings, bringing the results of their research to stages, streets, and private parties.

In February 2019, they enlivened the carnival parade “Sulla stessa barca” by performing carnival music and songs with the UnicaVuci Choir through the streets of Catania. They also participated in several festivals, including Cabrera World Music (Pozzallo, RG), Ursino Buskers (Catania), Sicilia in Libri (Catania) and Catania Risuona (Catania).

In 2020, they repeated the carnival experience in the parade “C’è un mondo sottosopra?” and participated in festivals and events such as Fistinu di Santa Libbirata (Palazzolo Acreide, SR), Baia Verde in Arte (Aci Castello, CT), and Intermittenze (Catania).

In 2021, after participating in the “Marranzano World Fest” (Gravina di Catania, CT) and “Fatti d’Amuri” (with Melo Zuccaro and Mimmo Aiola), they ventured beyond Sicily to perform in Bari and Cosenza. They also had their first international experiences in Greece, including the Cosmopolis Festival (Kavala), Xanti, Abdera, and an expedition to Athens funded by the I-Portunus project. During this expedition, they engaged in exchanges with local musicians, conducted singing and instrument workshops, and performed live.

In 2022, they played at the Rote Fabrik in Zurich and participated in various festivals: Catania Summer Fest (Catania), Iapri Fest (Naso, ME), Festival del Torto (Montemaggiore Belsito, PA), LithoSlow (Ferla, SR), Sponde Sonore (Palermo), and Ursino Buskers (Catania).

In December, with the UnicaVuci Choir and Melo Zuccaro, they presented a show on traditional Sicilian Christmas music.

In 2023, they played on the streets of Catania at the “Fuori Tempo” Carnival parade and continued their participation in festivals and events: Marranzano World Fest (Catania), Tremolo Project (Lille, France), SbarcaTour (Sbarcatore dei Turchi, Augusta, SR), Ursino Buskers (with the Palermitan ensemble “Le Matrioske”). In October they embarked on a 3-date tour in Belgium (Antwerp, Brussels, Tournai).

Since 2022, they have been organizing “Scialu”, a monthly workshop on Sicilian folk dances.

In 2021, they released the CD “Balli Siciliani” and in 2022, they participated in the recording of  “Alligrativi Pasturi” a CD by the UnicaVuci Choir of Catania featuring traditional Sicilian Christmas songs.

Social

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