Watching Italian films in lingua originale (original language, in this case Italian) is an excellent way to sharpen your ear to the sounds of the language spoken within a specific context. Not to mention, seeing Italian cinema is always an excellent way to get a dose of Italian culture!
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Here are links to info on current and upcoming Italian movies in and around San Diego.
Buona visione!
Film “Il pranzo di ferr’agosto” (Mid-august Lunch, with English subtitles), La Jolla Village Landmark Cinema, is still showing. Highly & amusing. Get out & see it!
Landmark Cinema
8879 Villa La Jolla Drive
La Jolla, CA 92037
(619) 819-0236
Showtimes: Daily 4:30 and 10:30 pm, Sat/Sun also at 11 am.
Mira Costa College International Film Series, monthly through May 2010 ~ Details here. (Location: Oceanside, Cost: free)
San Diego Italian Film Festival Classic Film Series, monthly/bi-montlhy through June 2010 ~ Click here for details
A few Italian film titles that I like (rent thru Netflix or your favorite movie rental provider): Jodina’s Movie Picks
Anna Maria Mazzini, born 25 March 1940, known simply as Mina, is an Italian pop singer with Swiss citizenship. Born to a working class family in Busto Arsizio, Mina grew up in Cremona and was college educated in accounting. She went on to become one of Italy’s great modern female vocalists. Distinguished by the great extension and agility of her soprano voice and her image as an emancipated lady, she was a staple of the Italian television variety shows and a dominant figure on the Italian charts in the 1960s and 1970s. Mina combined several modern styles with the traditional Italian melody and swing music, making her the most versatile pop singer in Italian music. She dominated the Italian charts for fifteen years and reached an unsurpassed level of popularity in Italy.
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Mina’s first TV appearances in 1959 presented the first female rock and roll singer in Italy. Her loud syncopated singing earned her the nickname Queen of Screamers (La Regina degli urlatori). For her wild gestures and body shakes, the publicity also labeled her the Tiger of Cremona (La Tigre di Cremona).
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Mina’s pregnancy and relationship with a married actor (Corrado Pani) caused her to be banned on the public Italian channels in 1963, because her lifestyle did not agree with the dominant catholic and bourgeois morals. After the ban, the Italian broadcasting service RAI continued, unsuccessfully, trying to prohibit her songs, which were forthright in dealing with subjects such as religion, smoking, and sex. To her ’bad girl’ image, Mina added sex appeal and a cool act, featuring public smoking, dyed blond hair, and shaved eyebrows.
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Mina’s voice had distinctive timbre and great power. Her main themes were anguished love stories interpreted in a dramatic way. The singer combined classic Italian pop with features of blues, R&B and soul music in the late 1960s. Top Italian songwriters created material with large vocal range and unusual chord progression to showcase her singing skills.
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Around 1978, the singer went into a sort of self-imposed exile in Switzerland. On March 30, 2001, after 23 years of reclusion, Mina’s made her last public appearance, on video showing her in a recording studio. Mina remains somewhat of an enigma, and in these years of ‘voluntary exile’, she has declined to give interviews and has communicated with her fans only by way of her records and her columns in magazines such as Vanity Fair and contributions to Italian newspapers.
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Here, a few Mina tunes I like (links to music & video):
Tintarella di Luna, a light upbeat tune considered ‘surf pop’, was Mina’s first Italian #1 hit (1959). The name, “Tintarella di luna,” means “Moon Tan”, which was performed in her first musicarello (musical comedy film) “Juke box – Urli d’amore.”
Io Sono il Vento, (I am the Wind), a song of a more dramatic flavor. Good collection of pictures here.
Le Mille Bolle Blu, (The Thousand Blue Bubbles), clip from the film “Mina… Fuori la Guardia” — check out the hair, the set, etc… Lady Gaga’s got nothing on Mina!
New song selections added 3/11/2010: “Donne” by Zucchero–
–3/12/2010: “Essere una Donna,” Anna Tatangelo
–Scroll down!
In honor of International Women’s Day (La Giornata Internazionale della Donna, or La Festa Donna), all this week I will be featuring various Italian songs dedicated to women, le donne.
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This list will grow as the days go by. Remember that you can easily find lyrics to the songs by doing an internet search using the song title followed by the word ‘lyrics’. And if you are unable to find a translation, you might consider using iGoogle.
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Le Canzone Dedicated alle Donne / Italian Songs dedicated to Women:
Happy International Women’s Day! (La Giornata Internazionale della Donna).
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On the 8th of March, International Women’s Day is celebrated widely around the World. The origins and history of this celebration are varied and date as far back as the 1800′s. (For more information, see the Wikipedia link below.)
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In 1945 (when the Italian Republic was born, after the period of Musolini and Fascism) the Union of Italian Women declared that March 8th – also known as “Festa della Donna”- should be dedicated to the celebration of womanhood across the country.
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Men and women (but especially men) offer bunches of yellow mimosa flowers (the yellow fragrant spring flower from the acacia tree) to all the important women in their lives. It is common to give flowers to family members, friends and co-workers.
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This day is an important opportunity that provides the chance to consider and discuss women’s rights and their role in society.
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Here, a few links to info and commentaries on la Festa della Donna. Some are in Italian… if you need help, you might try the URL/webpage translator at iGoogle.
“La Musica di Mercoledì” means “The Music of Wednesday” (or Wednesday’s Music).
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This will be a regular weekly installment on my web/blog-site, and will feature different Italian songs, music, and musical artists.
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Any Italian songs/musicians you really love?
Send ‘em my way — they might just end up in a future Musica di Mercoledì post!
~Your comments are always welcome~
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This week’s Italian musical picks arrive compliments of some of my friends in Italia who sent their favorite Italian love songs for my Valentines Day series of blog posts.
There was such a surplus of good songs that I couldn’t post them all… so, since love / l’amore is always in season, here are the rest of the canzoni d’amore:
