A popular dance in the South of Italy: PIZZICA LLP COMENIUS “Diversity of Cultures in Common European Home”

Free Steps:Imagine you are killing a spider Move you foot onward and forward.

Imagine you have a pain in your back and you cannot walk properly. You walk following the rhythm of the music

STEPS:it can be a courtship dance The boy dances around the girl without touching her.

1. Move first one foot and then the other as killing an insect. 2. Turn around 3. Walk as if you were lame

The typical instruments used were tamburello, guitar, fisarmonica and violin.tamburelloguitarfisarmonicaviolin.

Country of origin: Salento, ItalyItaly A popular dance from Salento, PUGLIASalento “Pizzica” is a traditional dance of Salento area, that is the most southern region of Puglia, corresponding to the province of Lecce and some municipalities of the provinces of Taranto and Brindisi. At present, the pizzica represents a typical salentinian tradition, even if originally it was typical of the whole region of Puglia.

Salento, Puglia,Italy Salento (Salentu in local dialect) is the south-eastern extremity of the Apulia region of Italy. It is a sub-peninsula of the main Italian peninsula, sometimes described as the "heel" of the Italian "boot". It encompasses the entire administrative area of the province of Lecce, a large part of the administrative area of Brindisi and part of that of Taranto. The peninsula is also known as Terra d'Otranto, and in ancient times was called variously Messapia, Calabria, and Salentina.Salento (Salentu in local dialect) is the south-eastern extremity of the Apulia region of Italy. It is a sub-peninsula of the main Italian peninsula, sometimes described as the "heel" of the Italian "boot". It encompasses the entire administrative area of the province of Lecce, a large part of the administrative area of Brindisi and part of that of Taranto. The peninsula is also known as Terra d'Otranto, and in ancient times was called variously Messapia, Calabria, and Salentina.ApuliaItalypeninsulaadministrativeprovince of Lecce BrindisiTarantoTerra d'OtrantoMessapiaApuliaItalypeninsulaadministrativeprovince of Lecce BrindisiTarantoTerra d'OtrantoMessapia

Pizzica as a dionysiac dance The pizzica dance belongs to a group of dances typical of the whole south of Italy area, usually called “tarantelle”.

The origin of these dances is really ancient, as they were originally used to worship Dioniso, the god of wine adored in the south of Italy in ancient times.

During the feasts in honour of Dioniso, people used to dance, to drink a lot and, consequently, to abandon themselves to dissolute behaviours.

Pizzica and the myth of Arakne Another explanation about the origin of the pizzica goes back to Ancient Greece. According to Greek Mythology, Arakne was a young and beautiful girl who was seduced and abandoned by a mariner.

After the mariner’s departure, Arakne spent her whole nights and days waiting for him to come back. Finally, one day, the girl saw on the horizon a boat approaching the coast. Her love was coming back!

But destiny is cruel: suddenly the boat was attacked by pirates, the mariners were killed and the boat sank. At her death, Zeus turned Arakne into a spider (a “tarantula”) and sent her back on earth to take revenge.

As time passed, the meaning of the pizzica dance changed. The interpretation of pizzica as a dance in honour of Dionisio left place to another one. The “pizzica” was associated to the bite of a “tarantula”: dancing seemed to be the only treatment for the bite of these spiders.

PIZZICA is the precursor of the tarantella. The origin of the pizzica comes from the pizzicato, the bitten, farm workers that were bitten by the tarantula spiders.

The pizzicate fell ill and in order to heal, they would enter into a trance and danced for hours until they recovered.

According to tradition, the common remedies of medicine couldn’t find any solution for the victim, whose only reaction was that of dancing histerically following the rhythm of a “tamburello”, a typical instrument of the traditional music of South Italy.

Art and its links to pizzica

PIZZICA A popular dance in the South of Italy LLP COMENIUS “Diversity of Cultures in Common European Home” 2008/2010