| A collection of 63 traditional and popular folk songs and tunes from Italy and includes tarantellas, saltarellos and old tunes. It has been compiled by David De Santi whose parents are from Vallo Della Lucania in Campania. David plays piano accordion. The title of the collection is ‘Zumpŕ’ and it is a Neapolitan dialect word meaning mean ‘jump’. 50 pages.
THE TUNES A Mezzanotte in Punto Addio, Mia Bella, Addio Bal del Truc Ballo Sardo Bella Ciao Borea Piemontese Calabrisella Mia Che Cos'e, Cosa Non e Chitarra Romana Cicerenella Ciuri, Ciuri Comme Facette Mammeta? Fenesta Che Lucive Fenesta Vascia Funiculi Funicula Gran Cuntradanza Il Canto del Cucu Il Carnivale di Venezia Italian National Anthem La Bella Gigogin La Biondina in Gondoletta La Biritullera La Canzone del Ciuccio La Domenica Andando all Messa La Furlana La Lavandera La Marianna Vla Va in Compagna La Monferrina La Raspa La Villanella - Bella Bimba L'Amore e Come L'ellera Mamma Mia Dammi Cento Lire Mazurca di Carolina Me Compare Giacometo O Sarracino Piemontesina Quadriglia di Aviano Quadriglia Napolitana Quando Quando Quando Quant'e Bello Lu Primo Ammor Quel Mazzolini di Fiori Raimondo's Cucina Reginella Campagnola Rosamari Salterello di Romagna Sam's Tarantella Santa Lucia Serenata Fiorentina Stornelli Romaneschi Tammuriata Nera Tarantella di Peppina Tarantella Montervergine Tarantella Napolitana Tarantella Sant' Alfio Tarantella Siciliana Tarantella Tipica Tarantella Tre Parte Tarantella Villagio Tarantella Numero Due Ti Voglio Bene Assaie! Torna a Surriento Valza di Mezzanotte Vitti 'na Crozza
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HOW THE TUNEBOOK CAME ABOUT I owe my interest in Italian folk music to mum and dad (mama and papa) due to the fact that they come from Italy, Vallo Della Lucania in the Campania region. My dad, Aniello or Andy as he is known as, taught himself the piano accordion after arriving in Australia in the early 1960s. He played in Italian flavoured bands and parties in the Wollongong area of New South Wales. Wollongong is 100km south of Sydney. There was and still is a large Italian community in the area based originally on supporting the Port Kembla Steelworks industry. At age 10 dad attempted to pass on the intricacies of the piano accordion to me. I learnt the classic Italian numbers. I must admit a reluctance during my teen years to playing or admitting that I played accordion and Italian music to my schoolmates. However my enthusiasm for playing the accordion was rekindled as I attended Wollongong University and I was introduced to Australian folk music through the Bushwackers. From there I progressed into Celtic/Australian folk music, became a member of a bush band, Warrabush and then Wongawilli, attended folk festivals and broadened my folk music interests. At some point in my folk music career, I think in my late twenties, there came a realisation that it was important to go back to my Italian musical roots. So began a journey of collecting, sourcing and playing Italian music along with the other folk music I played. There was also an acceptance by my folk music comrades who also were to happy play the material. We featured the music at a number of our local folk festivals at Jamberoo, Illawarra Folk Festival in the form of Italian Lunch. This was a combined food and music event with pasta like mama used to make! The interest was amazing and we still hold the event at the Illawarra Folk Festival. The group performing included my dad who had progressed to a myriad of percussion instruments including the tricche ballache, a Neapolitan noise maker. Other musicians included members of our Wongawilli Bush Band and friends from Obrobini. We’d found the tricche ballache on a holiday in Italy. It was being used in a band at a restaurant in the ancient hilltop medieval town of Tivoli outside of Rome. It is actually a Neapolitan instrument. Funnily enough, as in Australia, it was hard to find the old folk music being played. There were certainly the favourites at the tourist haunts but anything more authentic was difficult to source. I yearned to find a good tarantella and to share it! Opportunities arose to play the music I’d acquired at a couple of local theatre productions with Italian content, firstly Emma and then Italian Stories. So this collection has been around twenty years in the making. It’s a mix of popular tunes and songs and some more obscure items that I’ve found in books such as Elba Gurzau’s ‘Folk Dances, Costumes and Customs of Italy and a myriad of other books. There are also a couple of newly composed tunes and some from transcribed from recordings of Italian folk bands. Many of the tunes are actually songs but for simplicity I have omitted the lyrics. Many of the lyrics are available on various websites. Just type in the title and do a search. The title of the collection ‘Zumpŕ’ and it is a Neapolitan dialect word meaning mean ‘jump’. As in most translation of words it’s not quite the right meaning. It is more related to the feeling of dancing, jumping around happily. I thought it an appropriate description of what some of the music might do for that lurking inner Latin spirit! I would like to thank my wife and son, Tania and Samuel, for being very patient and supportive while I’ve been engrossed in this project. Thanks also to Jane Brownlee, Walter Bof and Mark Holder-Keeping for musical input and advice. Thanks to the opportunity from the National Folk Festival to present the music and this book at the 2006 event as part of the Italian theme. And of course I have to thank my dad and mum for making us play the music! It has certainly opened many social doors and provided many good times and more to come hopefully! David Pantaleo De Santi, April 2006 | 
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