Posted on 01/02/2007 2:36:36 PM PST by AnAmericanMother
Rome, Jan 2: The Catholic church is placing heavy metal, punk and jazz in hell and classical music in heaven in a musical on Dante's "Divine Comedy" composed by a Vatican conductor.
Father Marco Frisina, who directs the Rome diocesan choir and has composed a number of pieces for Italian television and popes, plans to premier the show in autumn here before taking it on a tour of European capitals.
According to a report in Tuesday's La Repubblica, Frisina will be using "rebellious" rock, punk and jazz tunes to represent hell while heaven will be described using classical and symphonic music. Gregorian chants will accompany the purgatory section of the musical.
The "Divine Comedy", which describes Dante's journey through hell, purgatory and heaven guided by Virgil, is considered one of the greatest European literary statements of the middle ages.
And Marty Haugen and David Haas ought to be right at the bottom of the last circle . . . but that's just my opinion.
Catholic musical ping!
Hieronimus Bosch, with musicians in hell. One was sitting inside some kind of a banjo and was playing it from there.
That's a hurdy-gurdy (see the crank on top), and that unfortunate appears to be playing a triangle from inside. Must be avoiding the strings, or it wouldn't play. Maybe she's standing on the keys.
I notice that all the instruments depicted are those of "popular music" of the time - hurdy-gurdy, lute, harp, flageolet, drum, trumpet, and shawm. (Some poor soul is inside the drum too - gotta be loud in there.)
Well, that could be entertaining. I wonder what he'll do with the Mohammed-in-Hell part...
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