Hands That Sing for the Fondazione Pisa Christmas Concert
Music and Sign Language with the “Bonamici Choir of Voices and White Hands”, Saturday, December 20
Many hands, wearing white gloves, moving to intone the songs of the Christmas tradition. They are the hands of the boys and girls of the “Bonamici Choir of Voices and White Hands”, who will perform at the Fondazione Pisa Christmas Concert on December 20, in the auditorium of Palazzo Blu.
On the occasion of the upcoming holidays, Fondazione Pisa and the “Bonamici” School of Music present a concert with a special focus on inclusion and disability. The Bonamici Choir of Voices and White Hands, made up of fifty children and young people aged between six and sixteen and founded in 2004 by Angelica Ditaranto, who also conducts it, performs by “translating” the sung voice into Italian Sign Language (LIS) gestures. This allows music to be accessible to deaf people and to those with other types of disabilities, guided by LIS interpreter Mariachiara Sinibaldi and accompanied on the piano by Glenda Poggianti.
During the performance, the young choristers wear white gloves so that their gestures are more visible even from a distance. The performance is thus enriched by an interpretation in which LIS gestures follow the melodic line and the duration of the sounds, enabling deaf audience members not only to understand the meaning of the text but also to imagine the music in its infinite expressive potential. The children, led by conductor Angelica Ditaranto, who herself wears white gloves while guiding them through the performance, are deeply involved and committed, with awareness and seriousness, so that the message is clear, harmonious, and complete for both listeners and viewers.
The program of the Saturday, December 20 concert will take participants on a fascinating journey through the most famous Christmas melodies of European and non-European traditions: from 17th-century sacred Italian pieces to Christmas carols from the Anglo-Saxon repertoire; from ancient medieval hymns and chants celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ to pieces derived from the villancicos of the Spanish tradition. There will also be great Latin classics such as Adeste fideles and compositions by Alfonso Maria de’ Liguori. The entire concert will be simultaneously translated into LIS.
The Bonamici Choir of Voices and White Hands is inspired by a project of integration and socialization based on the educational program of “Sistema”, founded by Antonio Abreu in Venezuela in 1975. Created to promote inclusion and emancipation among disadvantaged youth by offering opportunities for social redemption, the original project—evocatively titled “A violin instead of a weapon”—led to the creation of inclusive orchestras and choirs made up of hearing and deaf young people. Deaf participants experience music through vibrations and take part in the performance by expressing themselves through hand gestures, without using their voices.
The concert on Saturday, December 20 will begin at 5:00 p.m. Admission is free, with mandatory reservation via email at prenotazioni@scuolabonamici.it
