Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
RIBERA: THE RUTHLESS SPANIARD
Despite becoming the leading light of Naples' mid-17th-century art scene, success did little to brighten
Giuseppe de Ribera's dark side. Along with the Greek artist Belisiano Crenzio and local painter Giam-
battista Caracciolo, Lo Spagnoletto (The Little Spaniard, as Ribera was known) formed a cabal to
stamp out any potential competition. Merciless in the extreme, they shied away from nothing to get
their way. Ribera reputedly won a commission for the Cappella di San Gennaro in the Duomo by pois-
oning his rival Domenichino (1581-1641) and wounding the assistant of a second competitor, Guido
Reni (1575-1642). Much to the relief of other nerve-racked artists, the cabal eventually broke up when
Caracciolo died in 1642.
The following century saw the rise of the
la canzone napoletana
(Neapolitan song), its
roots firmly planted in the annual Festa di Piedigrotta folk song festival. Some tunes cel-
ebrated the city, among them the world-famous
Funiculì, Funiculà
, an ode to the funicu-
lar that once scaled Mt Vesuvius. Others lamented one's distance from it. Either way, the
songs deeply resonated with the locals, especially for the millions who boarded ships in
search of a better life abroad.
The arrival of the American Allies in 1943 sparked another one of Neapolitans' musical
predilections: jazz, rhythm and blues. As music journalist Francesco Calazzo puts it: 'As a
port city, Naples has always absorbed foreign influences. Musically, the result is a fusion
of styles, from Arab laments and Spanish folk to African percussion and American blues'.
This fusion came to the fore in the late 1970s. A defining moment for Neapolitan mu-
sic, it saw new-wave pioneers like Eugenio Bennatto, Enzo Avitabile and Pino Daniele re-
vive Neapolitan folk and cross it over with rock, roots and hypnotic African beats.
Singing many of his songs in Neapolitan, Daniele's bittersweet lyrics about his beloved
hometown - epitomised in songs like
Napule è
(Naples Is) - struck a particular chord with
the public.
Naples' rich musical heritage formed the focus of John Turturro's film
Passione
(2010),
a self-proclaimed 'cinematic love letter' to the city and its sounds.
Theatrical Legacies
Rivalling Naples' musical prowess is its theatrical tradition, considered one of Italy's old-
est. Its most famous contribution to the world stage is the commedia dell'arte, dating back
to the 16th century and rooted in the earthy ancient Roman comedy theatre of
Fabula
Atellana
(Atellan Farce). Like its ancient inspiration, this highly animated genre featured
a set of stock characters in masks acting out a series of semistandard situations. Perform-
