Tarantella tradizione e innovazione

Organetto refers to the Italian tradition centered on the diatonic button accordion (commonly called organetto in Italy), a bisonoric, button-based instrument whose reeds sound different on push and pull. As a genre, Organetto music is tightly bound to community dance and festival life across central and southern Italy and Sardinia. The repertoire blends 19th‑century European couple dances (polka, mazurka, waltz) with regional forms such as tarantella/pizzica, saltarello, and Sardinian balli (e.g., passu torrau). The instrument’s punchy bellows, rhythmic left‑hand "oom‑pah" bass–chord patterns, and bright, reedy right‑hand lines create an unmistakably lively, percussive groove that invites collective dancing. In the late 20th century the organetto moved from village dance floors to stages and recordings, spawning virtuosi, competitions, and collaborations with folk revival ensembles and world‑fusion projects—while still remaining the heartbeat of many local festivities.

Musica calabrese is the traditional folk music of Calabria, the southernmost mainland region of Italy. It is built around vibrant dance repertoires (especially the tarantella calabrese/sonu a ballu) and vocal song forms that narrate rural life, courtship, seasonal cycles, faith, and migration. Signature timbres include the zampogna a paru (Calabrian bagpipe) and ciaramella (a small shawm), the chitarra battente (a percussive five-course folk guitar), the organetto (diatonic button accordion), the lira calabrese (a bowed lyre on the Ionian/Reggio side), and the tamburello frame drum. Rhythmically, pieces often pulse in fast compound meters (6/8 or 12/8) supporting circular or couple dances, while vocal styles range from solo strophic songs to call‑and‑response at village feasts. Across its many subregional styles—from the Grecanic (Greek-speaking) communities of the Aspromonte to Arbëreshë (Albanian-Italian) villages—musica calabrese retains modal melodies, drone accompaniments, and ornamented, highly expressive singing.