Gatti-Taylor preserves Italian culture through sacred music
By Colleen Jurkiewicz
Published Jan. 6, 2013 at 9:03 a.m.
There is a reason sacred hymns are, well, sacred. Not only does their spiritual content speak powerfully to the faithful, but these songs are often ancient in age and steeped in ethnic identity.
Few cultures can rival the Italians as far as tradition and pride. And sacred music is an important piece of that tradition.
Dr. Marisa Gatti-Taylor, a native of San Marino, was educated in Detroit and worked as a soloist for many Italian-American churches in that city while pursuing her doctorate. She observed that classic hymns like "Ave Maria" were essential to the liturgical lifeblood of these churches.
"These songs always had everybody sobbing and just moved and feeling transported to the old times, and to their ancestors and to their faith," she said.
Inspired by the memory of those reactions, she and her husband Dr. Steven Millen Taylor have collaborated with Michael Kamenski, director of liturgy and music at St. Sebastian Church, on "Inni e Canti," an album featuring 15 rare Italian hymns.
The CD was recorded at St. Sebastian Church by the Festa Mass Choir.
The album has been in the works since 2009, and the two saw to it that a full English translation was done for each hymn, enabling non-Italian-speaking choirs to sing the arrangements. The Italian-to-English translation was executed by their daughter Olivia Gatti Taylor Kopitzke, an award-winning poet.
The songs have always been favorites of Gatti-Taylor's, and the track listing includes titles like "Dell'Aurora Tu Sorgi Piu Bella" (which was the recessional at Marisa and Steven's wedding) and "Ave Maria" in both Italian and Latin.
The production of this CD has been a labor of love for Marisa over the years, and on her frequent trips to Italy she has always attempted to find arrangements of these beloved hymns from childhood.
for the rest of the article, please visit OnMilwaukee.com at this link!
Published Jan. 6, 2013 at 9:03 a.m.
There is a reason sacred hymns are, well, sacred. Not only does their spiritual content speak powerfully to the faithful, but these songs are often ancient in age and steeped in ethnic identity.
Few cultures can rival the Italians as far as tradition and pride. And sacred music is an important piece of that tradition.
Dr. Marisa Gatti-Taylor, a native of San Marino, was educated in Detroit and worked as a soloist for many Italian-American churches in that city while pursuing her doctorate. She observed that classic hymns like "Ave Maria" were essential to the liturgical lifeblood of these churches.
"These songs always had everybody sobbing and just moved and feeling transported to the old times, and to their ancestors and to their faith," she said.
Inspired by the memory of those reactions, she and her husband Dr. Steven Millen Taylor have collaborated with Michael Kamenski, director of liturgy and music at St. Sebastian Church, on "Inni e Canti," an album featuring 15 rare Italian hymns.
The CD was recorded at St. Sebastian Church by the Festa Mass Choir.
The album has been in the works since 2009, and the two saw to it that a full English translation was done for each hymn, enabling non-Italian-speaking choirs to sing the arrangements. The Italian-to-English translation was executed by their daughter Olivia Gatti Taylor Kopitzke, an award-winning poet.
The songs have always been favorites of Gatti-Taylor's, and the track listing includes titles like "Dell'Aurora Tu Sorgi Piu Bella" (which was the recessional at Marisa and Steven's wedding) and "Ave Maria" in both Italian and Latin.
The production of this CD has been a labor of love for Marisa over the years, and on her frequent trips to Italy she has always attempted to find arrangements of these beloved hymns from childhood.
for the rest of the article, please visit OnMilwaukee.com at this link!
