An hour of intense, passionate musical performance that engages the audience dragged along by Hersi Matmuja's limpid, superlative voice and the all-around cello from which Jacopo Conoci extracts rhythms, cascades of sound and fluid phrasing that accompanies the songs like a tale.
LUM is the title of the performance staged at the Tirana Opera House on Sunday, Feb. 15, and it is also the title of the CD produced by Maladisco
In a packed hall eager to be carried away by Hersi's voice and Jacopo's strings, the two artists gave a performance of high value not only technically but also humanly.
Then again, a true interpretation of folk songs cannot do without the warmth that those notes convey and that involve not only Albanians but also a person like me who does not have his origins in this country.
In 12 tracks the two artists have created a kind of journey that starts in northern Albania, reaches the Arbërëshe communities located in various regions of Italy and stops in Salento.
It is precisely in Salento that Conoci and Matmuja have strong ties
Born in Lecce, Jacopo Conoci graduated in philosophy in the Apulian city where he attended the Tito Schipa Conservatory.He perfected his cello studies at the Lorenzo Perosi Conservatory in Campobasso. His musical training was enriched with conducting courses at the Accademia del Teatro alla Scala and the ensemble music course at the Fiesole music school. He has played in several Italian and foreign orchestras and participated in numerous festivals. He collaborated with the group Negramaro in the recording of two albums.
Hersi Matmuja, an Albanian from Kukës, has been a precocious singer since the age of 8. At the age of 19 she ranked first to enter the Santa Cecilia Conservatory in Rome, where she perfected her singing studies, earning top honors and the title of Maestro. To her solid classical training Hersi ,as everyone calls her, combines a passion for other modern musical genres. She has performed in various Italian and international theaters including the Teatro Olimpico in Rome,the Bellini in Naples,the Rossini in Pesaro,the Grand Theatre in Aix en Provence. She has long collaborated with the Orchestra di Piazza Vittorio in Rome.
The two artists form a close-knit and successful tandem to whom all our appreciation and gratitude goes for being able to unite with folk songs the traditions of the Albanian and Salento people.
Italian 
Albanian 
English