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Neopolitan dialect is an art form in itself. I sing this
song in the dialect in which it was originally written. The sounds and
emphasis of the language are as much a part of the communication of the song
as the music. I have worked with my father to make the pronunciation as
close to the original dialect as possible. And singing it this way, it has
gained an even deeper power of expression.
Longing for a lost love is a favorite theme of operas and
other arts. Torna a Surriento is one of the best-known Italian songs,
but it is incorrectly assumed to be a traditional love song. This is a love
song dedicated to a man for political reasons, not romantic. In September
1902, the president Giuseppe Zanardelli went on an official visit to
Sorrento. He stayed at a hotel where Giambattista de Curtis worked as a
decorator.
In those days Sorrento was in terrible shape with bad roads,
inadequate local services and shoddy houses. To get president Zanardelli to
do something as soon as possible, Giambattista wrote him a song.
Giambattista’s brother, Ernesto, wrote the music. Giambattista wrote the
lyrics in the traditional Neapolitan dialect. The words plead for a promise
to return to Sorrento. |
