AMA! ART MEETS AFRICA 2007

Artists

David Searcy, percussionist, since 1972  he has been with the Orchestra at the Teatro alla Scala of Milan.
Born in California, an eclectic artist who has played with some of the most important orchestras in the world.
Numerous collaborations with conductors such as Abbado, Barbirolli, Karajan, Muti, as well as record recordings with some of these.
Professor for percussion at the Royal Accademy of London. Organization of masters’ programs in Europe.
Ferruccio Amelotti – pianist, particularly active in chamber music. For more than 10 years has concentrated on duets, record recordings of works by Busoni, Donizetti, Rossini, Schumann ecc and frequently has been a guest performer for major symphonic orchestras.
Silva Costanzo - pianist with special aptitudes in XX° century music interpretation. Has performed with many well-known institutions, Conservatory G. Verdi of Milan, Teatro alla Scala of Milan and the Tokyo Opera City House.

Cristiano Pirola – percussionist,  collaboration with the Orchestra at the Teatro alla Scala and the Philarmonic at the Scala, under the direction of Muti, Pretre, Bychkov, Chung and Gergiev.

Leif Searcy - percussionist, many collaborations with internationally well-known artists such as Phil Collins, Carmen Consoli, Ricky Martin, Shania Twain, Alberto Fortis, Madreblu.


Alexander Samyi – sculptor and videoartist ,  Austrian-Persian born in Vienna , exposition architect for more than 300 projects with artists such as  Alfred Hrdlicka, Hermann Nitsch, Arnulf Rainer e Adolf
Frohner, early 90’s first video installation, collective and individual exhibitions, since 1997 active as scenographor and playwright (“Hamid”, “Seta” of Alessandro Baricco,  “Bambiland”  of Elfride Jelinek. ”Identitätsmaschine” (installations) part of the cultural project “solysombra” by the artist Gerhild Tschachler-Nagy in Carinthia


Mohamed Ba -  active in the fileds of theatre, letterature and music; founded the ethnic group Mamafrica with the objective to diffond  the african culture through music, folk performances and dances. The group is composto by percussionists and dancers from Senegal. They use instruments such as  JEMBE, SABAR, JUNG, JUNG-JUNG e BALAFON

Andrea De Carlo - I was born in Milano, Italy, where I grew up. My father was an architect, my mother a translator. My father’s father was from Sicily, my father’s mother from Chile. My mother’s family was from the Italian Northwest. I started writing when I was in high school, but things got more serious after my mother gave me a portable red Lettera 22 typewriter for my 18th birthday. With it I wrote a lot of impressions, sketches, short stories, letters, two whole unpublished novels, and finally my first two published ones. I got a degree in Modern History ( I’m still very interested in history, and the numberless stories in contains). I’ve travelled around the world a bit, spending long stretches of time in the USA, Australia, South America, and several European cities. With my third novel, Treno di panna (Creamtrain), I felt I had at last found my own voice, so I sent it to a few publishers, and to Italo Calvino. He liked it, and helped me publish it, writing a wonderful introduction for it. The following year I met Federico Fellini, and worked as assistant-director on his new movie, E la nave va (And the Ship Sails On). Towards the end of shooting, I directed a short movie on the director and his actors, Le facce di Fellini (Fellini’s Faces). I also worked with Michelangelo Antonioni, at a screenplay for a film that was never made. Years later, I directed a feature film loosely based on my first novel, Treno di panna.

Among my other non-literary endeavours are the ballets Time Out and Salgari with musician Ludovico Einaudi and dancer Daniel Ezralov, and the CDs Alcuni nomi with Bengali tabla player Arup Kanti Das, and Dentro Giro di Vento. My novels are: Treno di panna (Creamtrain), Uccelli da gabbia e da voliera (Cage and Aviary Birds), Macno, Yucatan, Due di due (Two of two), Tecniche di seduzione (Techniques of Seduction), Arcodamore (Lovebow), Uto, Nel momento (Here and Now), Pura vita (Pure Life), I veri nomi (The Real Names), Giro di Vento (Windshift), and Mare delle verità (Sea of Truths). They have been translated into 21 languages. To avoid the vaguely ‘dubbed’ feeling I always have when reading a translation, I re-wrote Windshift in English myself. I take part to the campaign “Writers for the forests” launched by Greenpeace, and my books are printed on unbleached, recycled paper. For the time being my base is a hilltop house in central Italy.