A female Italian Zampogna player, Maria Varalli

[Michael Kazmierski Dunn]

I just found another video recorded in December 2013 where another girl on a Zampogna, Riana Marco, is featured along with two other friends playing a Zampogna A Chiave (tenor Zampogna) and a soprano Ciaramella. Riana, is playing an alto Zampogna and I believe she is the first to strike up. So Maria Varali is NOT the only Zampognara! Ladies, are you proud?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4TGKY4owQo
Who knows if Maria Varali herself is in this video, I'm not sure. However, Simone Sottanella directed me to this video where he told me that Riana Marco is featured as another Zampognara here. Obviously, again I can't speak Italian so I don't know what the description says, hence why I don't know if Varali is playing.
BTW I showed the earlier Maria Varali clip to some of my other piper friends and they said "she sucks", "She's grade 4!" along those lines. "She's a whimpy sissy piper". Heck, I honestly wouldn't say that Maria is THAT bad! What about Riana? What would you say are your own personal impressions of her piping? And of course, feel free to also evaluate Maria as a piper too.
Just wanted to throw that out there. Perhaps we should rename this thread to just "Female Zampogna players"? Not specifically about Maria?

[thevoidboy]

[QUOTE=Michael Kazmierski Dunn;1334290.

BTW I showed the earlier Maria Varali clip to some of my other piper friends and they said "she sucks", "She's grade 4!" along those lines. "She's a whimpy sissy piper". Heck, I honestly wouldn't say that Maria is THAT bad! What about Riana? What would you say are your own personal impressions of her piping? And of course, feel free to also evaluate Maria as a piper too.

[/QUOTE]


It’s music. Get over yourselves. You may not like it. You may or may not play any better. But the point is to actually perform and listen.




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[Michael Kazmierski Dunn]

Exactly! It wasn't me who said maria wasn't a good piper! I think she's good. Not like Bartoli though... (Bartoli is THE MOST FAMOUS Italian opera singer in the world, so much so that you simply cannot talk about opera without mentioning her). Personally, from what I hear, I think Maria might be somewhere grade 3 or 2.5, and Riana is... hmm... not to judge... grade 3.5 or grade 4?

[Michael Kazmierski Dunn]

Well, I think I have another question here about zampognas that I'm sure other pipers could be willing to answer.
So, someone told me in the video of Maria Varali playing that she has the bag under her left arm. However, other pipers who play the zampogna have told me that the bag is squeezed between both arms and the chest, especially for bass instruments.
Having said that, is there anyone who knows what type of bag would be best for playing a bass zampogna with the bag under the left arm and the left hand on the bass? Here are some bass zampognas to show what I mean. Note that Maria Varali doesn't even play a bass zampogna, but just some examples to show visually what kind of bag, as far as where to tie the stocks in, etc, to be able to play a bass zampogna with the bag under the left arm and the left hand on the bass.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1CXOdNJel2w
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KAipLb11SCA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xx40IGe-K-E
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SmVPjHB9oEc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JBDOk1ZH_M0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0-eyHJzUecM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idMkfyuIaMA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wIsYvIIzMBU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eBQ3_W8a6yw
(This particular guy made Maria's zampogna)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k9R9k9ZGCJ8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FeS_YCLbv8Y
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qSM6xyz1q0Y
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fgCbtdUNkYQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZtP4EfUvk7w
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Juk61gDJIAU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uRBvF0v-DwA
(This one breaks the record for largest zampogna ever, an 8 palmi!)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4a5SpRNfIhg
Remember, I'm blind, so I can't actually see how these pipers hold the zampogna. Thing is, I don't know any zampogna player around here that is willing to do Skype lessons once I get myself a zampogna - it's going to be a few years, but I just want to get a sense for the posture.

[Michael Kazmierski Dunn]

CLARIFICATION: Maria's last name is Varalli, with two L's, not Varali. Funny enough this was the same thing with my favorite opera singer in the world, Denise Leigh. I seriously thought her name was Lee until December of 2018 when I was finally told correctly that her name is Leigh! That's the trouble you get when you're blind and only use a screen reader.

[Michael Kazmierski Dunn]

Ok... Maria Varalli on steroids here... a female pipemaker by the sound of it. This scares the Denise Leighs out of me! Is this girl really the first female bagpipe maker in the world? How can that be? The first female pipemaker is a zampogna costruttora? Please correct me if I'm wrong, Italian speakers.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iXMkwp_ObxM

[Michael Kazmierski Dunn]

Here is another female zampognara if I read the description correctly. Her name is Sabrina Forlano.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n_Xx...6z2TrA&index=1

[Doug Walton]

Post deleted

[Michael Kazmierski Dunn]

Awe... so it sounds to me that most of you don't like female zampogna players? Am I missing something? There weren't any reactions to Sabrina's playing so I thought people didn't like her. Why should you be afraid of or interested in putting down the girls trying to play Italian pipes? Pipers are pipers, after all! Who says zampogna playing is supposed to be male dominant? Nobody.