Luigi Stabile is a famous Calabrian Musician and Maker of Popular Instruments.
For years engaged in the research, study and repetition of traditional instruments and repertoires, especially for the “Ciaramella”, the tambourine, the “Calabrian lira” and the “zampogna”. Virtuous multifaceted instrumentalist and “Poet of Ancient Sounds”, Luigi over the years, in close contact with the last traditional builders, gives soul and sound to the archaic instruments he builds directly.
Today he is recognized as one of the most prepared and gifted builders of these instruments in southern Italy in the Calabria region, viscerally linked to what for him is a work-passion.
In 2014 in San Gregorio Magno, the President of the IOV ITALIA gave him the special “VICT – IOV” prize for the use of the typical instrument of Calabrian culture: “THE LIRA”, built by him.
To give credit to his tireless and obstinate dedication towards the construction of the instruments of his beloved Calabria and for his persistence of traditional music of agro-pastoral extraction, in 2015 he was awarded the title of “FATHER OF FOLKLORE” by the Italian Federation of Popular Traditions ” and on 27 February 2016, with council deed n.5, he was awarded, by the Administration, of his native Morano Calabro the “BENEMERITY CITIZENSHIP”.
To build his masterpieces, the master craftsman Luigi created a Research Laboratory.
The work he carries out is dedicated not only to the study of the instrument, but to the attention in the construction, the choice of materials, the metrics and the melodic to be used, especially for the Ciaramella (wind instrument), the Tamburello (percussion instrument ), the Lira (stringed instrument), the Zampogna (bag pipe instrument).
The shop is visited by many people of all ages and from everywhere, and each of them is explained and revealed a secret, starting to know the harmonic turn of the Lira, the hypnotic sound of Ciaramella, the touch of the cymbals of the Tamburello appropriately adorned, and the archaic harmony of the Bagpipe, and then vocalize the ancient rhythms of the Terra del Pollino in southern Italy in the Calabria region.
A brief description of the instuments is given:
– Ciaramella: Has European origins and is a popular aerophone musical instrument; its invention, although not certain, should be in the 12th century; it is part of the family of oboes with double reeds, conical bore and without keys; it is used for medieval, renaissance and folk music.
– Tambourine: It has Middle Eastern origins and is a popular membranophone musical instrument; its invention dates back to the second millennium BC; it is part of the family of indeterminate sound percussion instruments, it is also called the Bass Drum; it is used for many types of music, including folk music.
– Calabrian Lira: It has origins in Calabria and is a popular stringed chordophone musical instrument; due to its organ logical characteristics, it is part of a group that can be defined as “BYZANTINE LYRE” composed with strings parallel to the soundboard; it is used for folk music and traditional music from Southern Europe; it is widespread in the area of Locride and Monte Poro.
It is played alone or accompanied by the Tambourine and Whistle for the Calabrese Tarantella.
– Zampogna: a bag pipe has origins in Italy and is a popular musical instrument aerophone with an air tank; it is the transformation of the flute of the God Pan and, among the players of antiquity, the Roman Emperor Nero is included; it is equipped with a generally goat skin and 4-5 reeds that are placed in a stump where the skin is tied. Only 2 reeds are a singing instrument while the others are drone (they play a fixed note). The reeds end with reeds that can be single or double; it is used for many types of music.