Villa Pennisi Musica was founded in 2009 by the MAR Musica – Arte –Ricerca Association. What is it? A festival that combines great music, architecture, design, and eco-sustainability. In a few concrete words, this is the definition of Villa Pennisi in Musica, otherwise known as VPM. Davide Bennato, professor of Sociology of Cultural and Communication Processes and Sociology of Digital Media at the University of Catania, explains the project to us. It's not just classical music, architecture, or communication, but all three areas offered together. The goal is to train live music professionals through the Summer School and Master Classes. And that's not all. Another of VPM's missions is to educate listeners' ears through a Music Festival that will enliven various venues in Acireale. Davide Bennato and VPM's Artistic Director, David Romano, explain, step by step, what this unique project in Italy entails.
A simple but necessary question: What is Villa Pennisi in Musica?
DB Looking at the phenomenon from a more general perspective, VPM is a summer cultural event held in Acireale and consisting of a series of classical music concerts. From this perspective, it is consistent with the type of cultural events held throughout Italy during the summer. But VPM is a unique project for at least two reasons. The first is purely organizational, in that Villa Pennisi in Musica also consists of a Summer School divided into two types of courses.
The first is the Classical Music Master Classes, and in this respect, to use a pop metaphor (which I'm crazy about), VPM is a kind of Hogwarts of classical music, but also of architecture. Indeed, another component is related to architecture and design. Another VPM Master Class, coordinated by Sergio Pone, focuses on the construction of the stage machinery within which the concerts are held. This structure solves an acoustic problem typical of classical music, which is difficult to fully enjoy in open spaces other than concert halls.
And at Villa Pennisi in Musica, this problem is solved. How?
DB Yes, it is solved through the construction of a particular architectural structure, called ReS. In non-technical terms, Res is a stage where music is played. But looking at it with a slightly more technical eye, you realize that it is a very sophisticated construction. ReS won the PETER LORD AWARD 2015, awarded by the Institute of Acoustics (UK) for its exceptional and innovative acoustic design. Its aim is to optimize the acoustics of the music produced by the instruments played in this space. Therefore, Villa Pennisi in Musica is a highly interesting example of the fusion of classical music and architecture. The fascinating thing is that in a beautiful Sicilian town, Acireale, within a beautiful eighteenth-century villa, there is a fusion between the backgrounds of architecture and classical music.
But you're a professor of Sociology of Digital Media. What role do social media play in this architectural-musical fusion project?
DB The digital communication component cannot be separated from the musical and architectural one. I speak as a classical music enthusiast. So my perspective is that of a sociologist trying to make sense of this phenomenon. And as far as I'm concerned, Villa Pennisi in Musica represents a challenge for digital communication. Why? Because culture in Italy is struggling to embrace the use of social and digital tools. The only cultural field that is successfully leveraging Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter is cinema, because this sector has a strong industrial component.
Other cultural industries, however, are unable to communicate their products through social media. This is even more true for a classical music concert. I emphasize Italy, because in Europe there are excellent examples of using storytelling and digital communication to promote specific cultural objects, such as a violin or a piano. But I believe the communication potential offered by social media can be effective in communicating classical music.
David Romano, in your opinion, as artistic director of VPM and a musician, is it really possible to communicate classical music through social media or does it risk trivializing the experience of classical music?
DR Social media is a tool, and like all tools, the problem lies in how it's used. In Italy, the real problem is that there's no culture tied to academic, scholastic music marketing. Furthermore, the role of social media manager has only recently emerged, let alone one specialized in a specific sector, like music. Villa Pennisi is essentially a fusion of music, architecture, research, and performance. These four elements are not autonomous; by the time they arrive in Acireale, they're a single entity. At VPM, the problem is: "What am I talking about? What content should be made accessible to the listener, to the person on the other end of the video?"
The problem, but also the opportunity, arises from the interplay between music, architecture, and communication. At a certain point in the history of Villa Pennisi in Musica, it became inevitable to feel the need to share what we were doing. Talking about it was the necessary step to engage people, music and architecture professionals, in this experience. At Villa Pennisi, there's plenty to communicate—too much of it. The challenge lies in communicating this ongoing interaction between the architecture students building the ReS, the musicians rehearsing their performances, and the cross-fertilization of ideas that occurs between the two fields.
In the link below you will find the Villa Pennisi in Musica Festival program
