RIFRAZIONI SONORE

«Sailing folk say that a perfect boat should resemble a violin, so I wondered “why shouldn’t I really play one?». This was the idea that came to Emanuele (Aldo) Battaglia, a doctor and lover of wooden boats, genial designer and builder of the ‘barcassa’. Some people thought he was mad, but others reckoned he was a genius, so between appluse and criticism his ‘creation’ took form.  He was encouraged by Mario Brunello and Giovanni Sollima, who both believed in the idea from the outset.
They were inspired by the octobass, a sort of enormous double bass with three strings, almost four meters high – a boat to all intents and purposes – known locally as a nassarola. However, it has one particular feature: with a soundboard and three steel strings it becomes a musical instrument.
This led to the idea of a visionary opera, never contemplated before. The sound, ably modeled by the musician’s fingers, propagates from the wood to the water, and from there to the listener, in a sort of exchange of suggestions. For this occasion Giovanni Sollima has written a composition for barcassa and cello, which he will perform, together with Mario Brunello, during this appointment at the Stresa Festival.