This week (1-5 February 2022), the 72nd Sanremo Music Festival (or Festival della Canzone Italiana, the Festival of Italian Song), is taking place here on the Italian Riviera. Since 1951, the Sanremo festival has been the premier event in the Italian music industry's calendar. Singers compete over five nights for the top prize, chosen by a public vote and a judges' panel, and each year the winner becomes Italy's official entrant to the continent-wide Eurovision Song Contest. It is also a major television event - each night, over 50% of televisions in Italy are tuned in to the festival.
Here are some of the reasons why Sanremo holds the whole of Italy's attention for a few nights every winter:
The Stars
Famous Italians often appear in Sanremo's Ariston Theatre at this time - not just singers, but celebrities from other walks of life show up to be photographed and to compere the evenings, give interviews and network. This year, the top-ranked Italian tennis player and Wimbledon finalist, Matteo Berrettini, was a host of the opening night.
In previous years, internationally-renowned singers have joined the Italian talent on stage. Louis Armstrong, Cher, Stevie Wonder, Dusty Springfield and Shirley Bassey have all performed at the Sanremo festival. Italian pop diva Raffaella Carrà performed, hosted and gave artistic direction regularly between 1983 and 2014. Sophia Loren has also walked the Ariston Theatre's stage as a host.
The Fashion
As you might expect of an Italian media event, fashion is absolutely central to the Sanremo Festival. It is a chance for established fashion houses to reinforce their brands, and for exciting new designers to get a foot in the door - especially if a young performer in the "Newcomers" division gets noticed in an outfit from a bold new fashion creator.
Fashion personalities like Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana, Giorgio Armani and Donatella Versace have all made appearances at Sanremo. Keeping count of the designer outfits is certainly some people's idea of fun; for the record, last year Dolce & Gabbana had 24 outfits on the stage, Armani had 14, Versace and Gucci had 6 each.
The Music
Sometimes, global hit songs are premiered at Sanremo, such as 1958's Volare - originally sung by Domenico Modugno, later covered by Luciano Pavarotti in Italian and Dean Martin in an English version. Last year's winning band, Måneskin, also won the Eurovision Song Contest with "Zitti e buoni",and went on to have chart-topping English-language hits in the US and UK. Other famous Sanremo winners include popular artists like Eros Ramazzotti, Mahmood and the group Il Volo.
But even if a song, or a singer, doesn't become a global household name at Sanremo, they can still set the zeitgeist for Italian music for years to come. The Sanremo Festival is a place to try new things, experiment artistically with song, performance and fashion. It is, ultimately, a place for creativity and for contributing to Italy's rich modern culture. So pour yourself a glass of prosecco, and join most of the country in watching the Festival final on Saturday 5th February. 8pm CET.
Thinking of your next retreat? Choose the Riviera as your next destination.
Photos: Scorcio.it