Pifferari
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Pifferari (singular pifferaro ) is an older Italian name for the shepherds from the Campagna who came to Rome around Christmas time and made music there in front of the images of Mary . Today's Italian name for "pipe blower " is pifferai (singular pifferaio ).
Pifferari are the shepherds from the Volskergebirge and Abruzzo , “who came to Rome during Advent to make music in front of the images of Mary on the street corners with their strange shawm ( piffero ), bagpipes (zampogna) and monotonous singing. Their songs and sages are ancient; after each verse there is an adagio , at the end of which the piffero comes in with a shrill trill. The Pifferari, usually an old man with a collar coat, pointed hat and bagpipes, and a black curly boy wrapped in fur with a shawm, both wearing sandals, were among the most picturesque figures of Rome ”(Meyers Konversationslexikon, 4th ed. 1885-1892, here Vol. 13).
The Pifferari, an integral part of Roman folk life, have often been described and pictured. The composers Hector Berlioz and Leopold Weninger were musically stimulated by the ancient music of the shepherds. See also pastoral .
literature
- Hans Geller: I Pifferari . Shepherds making music in Rome. Leipzig: VEB EA Seemann 1954.