Musica Siciliana online concert Sunday/oggi 3PM (Eastern)/21:00 in Italia. Zoom. Gratis. Access at event at https://experiencesicily.com/sicilian-folk-music-concert/. I’ll be playing a tamburello (tambourine/frame drum) during today’s concert-lecture of traditional Sicilian folk music. Although my drum is from Palermo, it’s not as magical as the one I’m holding in this photo from summer 2019, when our group…
Tag: frame drum
How You Play The Drum
This is Alfio Antico’s drum. Close up. He made it and carved it himself. In person, it is sturdy and heavy, so much so that only someone of his strength could play it. When we visited with him in the hills near where he grew up in Sicily, he talked about the Great Mother: Earth….
Full Circle
Sieves, like the one shown, have been used for generations to aid the olive and almond harvests (just to name two examples of when it’s used) by straining dirt and other particles out from fruit that has fallen to the ground. When we see an antique sieve next to a tamburello, or Italian frame drum…
Alfio Antico, Shepherd to Performing Artist
Percussionist and composer Alfio Antico grew up as a shepherd in the mountains not far from Siracusa. As a child, he learned great respect for the Earth and was inherently connected to his flock of 600 sheep. These roots, along with the influence of his grandmother, created a deep wisdom that he now expresses through…