Pizzica: the centuries-old Italian folk music still whipping up a frenzy

Pizzica has transcended its Dionysian roots to find its place in the centre of the biggest festival in Italy, and is now performed worldwide – but as with all ancient arts, adapting to modernity hasn’t been easy

When Antonio Castrignanò listens to pizzica, he hears much more than tambourines and drums. “This music really feels like a dream,” is how the musician and composer puts it. “It gives dignity to the sacrifices my people made for their own freedom, to no longer be inferior to anyone.”

It’s an emotion other natives of Salento would doubtless understand. Birthed in village squares and olive groves, right at the heel of the Italian boot, pizzica acted for centuries as the region’s daily soundtrack, its frenzied dances solace for Castrignanò’s forebears as they loved and worked and prayed.