In a small town like ours, where everybody knows everybody, we get to see our youngsters from when they are born, to when they become fully- fledged adults (which is when we realize how old we are becoming!). Some choose to carry on family businesses, or to find employment in the area, whilst others take off for distant fields, in the hope of finding an alternative path…..or even two.
We remember local girl Martina Granelli as a husky-voiced, cute little dark-haired girl at primary school, and now we behold a young woman who, though still as cute, has transformed her voice into a beautiful instrument, and is no longer quite as dark-haired as we recall! Last night, she performed for the very first time in her hometown, and was acclaimed by her fellow townspeople, many of whom hadn’t yet had the pleasure of hearing her sing. Yes, because Martina now sings classical/opera music, after having studied at the Conservatory “Arrigo Boito” of Parma.
When she was a child, her inborn love for music began to emerge, when she decided to take piano lessons and sing in the school choir. This passion runs in the family DNA, since her maternal grandmother loved to sing in church, and her two uncles are highly-rated musicians. Later on, a friend who sings in a local choir specializing in opera music, suggested that she go and have an audition, which she did. Martina was immediately taken on in the soprano section, and became their mascot, as the youngest member of the formation. She remembers her years with the “Corale Lirica” with fondness, because the chorists got on well together, they gave concerts in many different places around the world, and most of all – she discovered that opera singing was right up her street.
Then came the time to move on, due to the studies she had chosen to take up at the university of Parma; Language and Modern European and American literature. It became impossible to reconcile choir activities with her studies, so, with a heavy heart, she left the choir. But she couldn’t ignore the calling for music, which was still very strong in her, so she began to take lessons with the soprano M° – Wilma Colla Egaddi – and also attended a 3 year pre-academy course in order to gain access to the Conservatory. In the meantime, she completed her studies in languages, graduated in 2014, and in 2015, signed up for the course of Renaissance and Baroque music at the Conservatory , under the tuition of baritone M° Sergio Foresti . There is no doubt that Martina showed great perseverance in the pursuit of her goals, because it certainly wasn’t easy to fit lessons, which required mandatory presence, in with her new work as a French teacher. Some tutors were appreciative of her efforts, and endevoured to meet her needs, but it wasn’t always like that, so it resulted in an endless requesting of part-time in her job, in order to attend all the necesssary lessons. But she never gave up, and in October of 2019, her graduation was proclaimed, while tears ran down her face with relief and joy!
Martina is a very sociable, fun-loving young woman, and she never lost contact with her childhood friends, who are always here for her every time she comes home. Social life is very important to her, as are her fellow Bedoniesi, and for this reason she wanted to perform for them. So last night was the night – a stage was set up in one of the smaller, acoustically suitable squares of the town, and Martina sang for us. She was accompanied by her pianist friend and fellow student Alessandro Trapasso, and the programme included pieces which ranged from Mozart and Bach to Verdi and Bizet. The square was full of enthusiastic people, some genuinely lovers of classical music, many simply curious to hear what she could do……and none were disappointed. The final applause was Bedonia giving our local talent an enormous thumbs up, her proud parents – Flavia and Pierluigi – rightfully chuffed, and Martina, who had given her all to reach this point, can finally say “I did it”!
Bedonia’s got talent!