“From Earth to Heaven” – A concert at the Cava Madre in Candoglia

Saturday 24 August 2024 – 5.00 pm

At the Cava Madre in Candoglia, run by the Veneranda Fabbrica del Duomo di Milano – Municipality of Mergozzo (VB)
 
Federica Napoletani, soprano
Roberto Olzer, piano
Marco Rainelli, flute

As part of the collaboration to promote the Ossola area and its stone resources, initiated by the Montorfano Granite Ecomuseum, the Municipality of Mergozzo and the Veneranda Fabbrica del Duomo di Milano, a concert will be held on Saturday 24 August at 5.00 pm at the Cava Madre in Candoglia (Municipality of Mergozzo – Province of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola): ‘From Earth to Heaven’, a musical journey expressing the profound bond between humankind, nature and the infinite, ranging from Romantic compositions to the intensity of hymns of prayer, featuring music by Debussy, Fauré, Schubert, Tosti, Bach, Gounod, Verdi, Puccini and Morricone.
 
The Candoglia Quarry, which will exceptionally serve as the backdrop for the event, is the source of the marble used in Milan Cathedral. From this extraordinary site, in fact, the precious and rare pink marble has been continuously quarried since 1387, intended exclusively for the construction, restoration and maintenance of Milan Cathedral, a symbol of the city throughout the world.
 
The concert, which also benefits from the collaboration of Mergozzo Si Nota and the Mergozzo Archaeological Group, in partnership with Baveno, Città del Granito and the UNESCO Sesia Val Grande Geopark, with the support of the VCO Community Foundation (Ente Filantropico), is part of the cultural programme ‘La Pietra racconta’, which, now in its eighth edition, will celebrate in 2024 the twentieth anniversary of the Mergozzo Municipal Archaeological Museum and the tenth anniversary of the GranUM Museum in the municipality of Baveno.
 
To mark the performance, the workshops and the Candoglia marble quarry will be open to the public from 3 pm. At the same time, a shuttle service will be provided to transport participants to the quarry in small groups; whilst waiting for the performance to begin, they will be taken on a guided tour of the various work areas where the carved marble elements used to restore Milan Cathedral are produced.
When booking, you must select the time slot in which you wish to use the shuttle service.
 
 
Tickets (full price €35 – concessions for 12–18-year-olds €20) can only be purchased online via the link
https://ticket.duomomilano.it/eventi/dalla-terra-al-cielo/
 
In the event of bad weather, the event will take place at the Church of the Annunciation in Albo di Candoglia, at the same times and will still be preceded by a special opening of the Veneranda Fabbrica workshops.
 
Information about the performance
 
The concert, featuring Federica Napoletani (soprano), Roberto Olzer (piano) and Marco Rainelli (flute), will unfold as a musical ascent from earth to heaven, a sonic journey designed to express the profound bond between humankind, nature and the infinite.
Alongside pieces inspired by the quarry’s marvellous natural setting, such as Debussy’s ‘Syrinx’ – which opens the concert – and Bazzini’s “La ronde des lutins”, the programme features examples from a vast musical repertoire centred on the beauty and evocative power of nature, such as the moonlight sung by Fauré, the murmur of water described by Schubert in “Spring”, ‘L’alba che separa dalla luce l’ombra’ by Tosti.
This Franciscan-inspired celebration of creation becomes, piece by piece, a veritable prayer, through Fauré’s ‘Pie Jesu’ and the melodies Morricone composed for the film ‘Mission’. A crescendo that finds its fulfilment in the praise of the Virgin, which pervades the rosy walls of the Cava and reaches its highest expression in Bach-Gounod’s “Ave Maria”, Verdi’s “Vergine degli Angeli” and Puccini’s “La Grazia è discesa dal cielo”.
 
Bookings: ticket.duomomilano.it
Tickets Section – “Concerts and Cultural Events”
 
Please note: The event takes place in Candoglia, a hamlet in the municipality of Mergozzo (VB), approximately 100 km from Milan
 
For further information
Duomo Infopoint:info@duomomilano.it- 02 72023375
Montorfano Granite Ecomuseum:info@ecomuseogranitomontorfano.it- 0323 840809