La trama

Mons regalis

Il sogno di Guglielmo

Nel segno dell’oro

Canone vitruviano

La fabbrica del duomo

Oltre le fedi

L’offerta alla Vergine

Silentium

Rapsodia musiva

Pulchritudo salutis

Note degli autori
Even if the title of compositions is often the last thing to be written, in this case it was the first one. Mons regalis immediately came to mind as the initial source of the opera, dragging along right from the start all the impetus of might it carries, such as the historical events of the Norman kings or the grandeur of the architectural structure but, above all, the extraordinary might of the Pantocrator embracing not only the Duomo but also time, history and all the visitors. This was the very challenge for the composing of an opera on Monreale, an opera which deliberately depicts the Duomo with a purely religious outline, subtly revealing the complexity of its historical genesis, a sensation of the cathedral rather than the stronghold. To be drafted were therefore lyrics which would be easily grasped by the general public but which would convey the solemn emphasis of the whole, a work which could convey the depth of the theological message contained in the tesseras of the mosaics but, at the same time, which would be comprehensible for modern listeners. What’s more, it was necessary to assemble the words also with the strong intercultural connotations that the Duomo carries, connotations which are of the utmost topicality at present, and to bear witness to the many-sidedness of linguistic and cultural traditions which had followed one another. In order to do this, what was resorted to was Latin (to be found in the initial chant and in the Rule of St Benedict), a Greek/Byzantine chant and an Arabic chant, all three expressly “thought of” for this work. For a wider approach and also for due enculturation, a ballad-singer was asked to “translate” into philologically thorough language (construed according to the koiné of literary Sicilian) but, at the same time, promptly comprehensible, just as the biblia pauperum the images depict.

Salvino Leone

After months have passed, these lyrics by Salvino Leone still leave me agape, call on me and let me know everything about the wonders of the Duomo in Monreale. Creative instinct carried me away independent of my will; after much effort at the beginning, gradually the notes came out naturally, making themselves heard and having others play them in that incredibly fascinating cathedral. I feel honoured every time my music makes those lyrics come to life, lyrics so pregnant, teeming with History and Love. I saw my way along the twists and turns of the cultures that have spanned Sicily, in time and in space, in the choice of the different members of the orchestra and in the airs. I was all out for the presence of our tradition, without neglecting my own mark. For the scoring and the harmonizing of the choir I singled out Massimo Sigillò Massara, since, excluding pre-established outlines, he would understand my ratio, implied but not yet given voice to. So it was, going beyond expectations. I am specially grateful to Piero Ostali, as well as to Casa Musicale Sonzogno. With out-of-the-ordinary awareness Mr Ostali has believed in the source of this Work, making it see light. I feel like a grain of sand in a vast desert but I am thankful. I dedicate all this to my father.

Lucina Lanzara

To try to give shape to music is not at all easy … At times one starts off at a certain point, sure of getting where one expects to but when all is over one finds out the destination is quite a different one. To discover that a place has a sound of its own and that it is possible to attempt to pass on to others the concept and the emotions of that place, in sound this smacks of incredibility.
To try to make the profound and complex lyrics as clear as possible, with their flowing along in appropriately litany-like music; to have the listener witness the atmosphere of such an inspired work of art as the Duomo in Monreale by means of the sound coming from an orchestral ensemble, still seems to be an important task according to me …
I have tried to give shape to the ideas of Lucina and Salvino by means of the filter of my inner hearing, hoping I have headed for the right direction and that the latter may be promptly reached by those listening in to Mons Regalis.

Massimo Sigillò Massara

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