MILAN, Sept. 10 (Class Editori) - From the frequencies of RAI Italia, a multichannel dedicated to Italians living abroad, a Italia con voi program is broadcast weekly, dedicated to Italians who have achieved success abroad in the various business and cultural sectors. The program is always mainly oriented towards the continents where the Italian community has been present and populous for many generations (USA, Canada, Argentina, Brazil and Australia).
But for some time in Shanghai an artistic talent has emerged in the musical field and is bringing to China the natural vocation of most singers and songwriters born in the lands of Emilia Romagna, who made the history of Italian music.
Dalla, Vasco Rossi, Guccini, Zucchero, Pausini, Ligabue, Morandi and even Casadei are just a few names that come to mind. In their wake Alessia Raisi stepped into the limelight, after living on the border between the provinces of Bologna and Ferrara.
After university and her work experience in the transport sector which brought her to China, she debuted in the world of song.
Alessia could seem like an usual singer who, with some singing talent, aims to break into the expatriate community and among some Chinese groups intrigued by new voices. Instead Alessia has a quality and a peculiarity difficult to find: what today is defined as X Factor.
With a vague resemblance to the unforgotten Gabriella Ferri, who was the icon par excellence of Roman dialect songs, Alessia composes songs in Chinese, creates the melody and sings them.
Furthermore, as Ambassador of the Italian music in China, she promoted the spread and understanding of Italian song in China. She had the idea of translating Nel blu dipinto di blu (Volare) into Chinese, through the production of a video and then singing it on several occasions, including the exhibition at the Milan Expo 2015 in the three Chinese Pavilions included the institutional one.
It should also be mentioned her exhibition in 2018 on the occasion of the National Day of the Republic of China before the representatives of the Chinese Government, singing the song China National Anthem.
While in the other continents the language used by Italian musical talents is that which is normally spoken by the Italian community (English, Spanish and Portuguese), in China the language becomes a barrier both for difficulties in translation and for a different concept of what it is called artistic expression.
As a matter of fact, the content of her lyrics is very short and simple, probably due to the simultaneous translation in the Chinese language.
The lyrics of Italian songs, especially those from the past, have content that create a story. But in this case, the problem of language is predominant. And if Alessia's goal is to reach the consent of the Chinese public, this stylistic trick is a good thing.
The song Italia, a part from the verses structure, is permeated by a profound sense of nostalgia for the homeland, perhaps an irrefutable sign that integration is difficult and full of obstacles.
Xiaolu Gao, a Chinese writer who today lives in London, writes in her diary "The nine continents": "I have the impression that people decide to settle in a place because they love not the place, but the commitment that they gave, the emotional investment. I often imagine myself as a fern that grows in a cold climate... Maybe it could teach me something...".
The challenge of Alessia that with her mission amplifies, on the one hand, national creativity in a path that until now had never been followed by anyone, on the other the spread of cultural heritage that have marked the life of many generations when "il profumo e il sapore di un caffè" with "la tua storia... I tuoi valori... Meravigliosa sei Italia".
Deejay on stage in Riccione, the event promoted every year by the radio of the same name, where Alessia performed on the evening of 18 August, was the proof of the success of her melting pot.
*edited by Marco Leporati, Managing Director at Savino Del Bene – transport and logistics company. He lives and works in China since over 25 years.
(Source:Class Editori)
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