Publications

Launeddas is edited by the cultural Association cultural CUNCORDIA A LAUNEDDAS, published by a AM&D. It contains the results of around seven years of research and studies carried out by its members.

Each of them has actually dealt with a specific subject concerning this instrument which is symbolic of the musical tradition of Sardinia. The subjects which have been developed are : the collection of the canes (Dante Tangianu), the continual breathing technique (Ignazio Zucca), the construction of the instrument (Luciano Montisci and Ignazio Zucca), the acoustical laws related to it (Antonio Fanari), its lustre in the past centuries and its recent crisis (Giampaolo Lallai, who has edited the whole volume), the impressions reported by travellers in the XIX century (Ermenegildo Lallai), its musical characteristics (Gianfranco Meloni and Giulio Pala), its discography (Ignazio Spano) and the propaganda activity performed by the association (Franco Sirigu).

Important experts and university teachers have collaborated in the draft of the book. Among them: Salvatore Naitza and Maria Grazia Scano who has written on the launeddas in art, Antonio Romagnino on launeddas and Saint Efisio, Giovanni Dore about its players met during his long ethno-musical activity, Giacomo Serreli on the contamination between the ancient instrument and modern music, Pietro Sassu on the melodic micro-structures of Sardinian music, Paolo Bernardini on the bronze statue of Ittiri, which represents a launeddas player, Vincenzo Santoni on the relationship between this statue and the nuragic cults, Giulio Paulis on the etymology of the word launeddas, Giampaolo Mele on a medieval illumination which shows 2 launeddas players.

It is therefore the first time that launeddas have been studied from so many points of view. The rare preceding publications, and particularly those by Giulio Fara (1910) and by Weis Fridolin Bentzon (1960), are, in fact, real mile stones in this field but they had touched only some aspects, even though important ones.

The main aim of Launeddas is to make the instrument better known and to show that it is a fundamental element in the Sardinian cultural heritage. Therefore the language is simple and easily understood. More than 180 photos (many of which have never been published before), tables and graphics are complementary to the text, and are useful to discover not only the musical value but also the historical and social importance of launeddas. This characteristic is well explained in the subtitle of the book which defines launeddas as the heart of the Sardinian people. In more than 3000 years, its sound, sometimes nostalgic and heart-breaking, its sometimes joyful and enthralling rhythms, are the most faithful expression of the Sardinian people, who, despite the dominations endured during the centuries and the historical events that have often limited or even humiliated their specific identity, keep their dignity as a people and has a strong link with their roots.