"ACCADEMIA DI SANTA SOFIA" - BENEVENTO - Petra Magoni e Ilaria Fantin: Un Viaggio sonoro tra Tradizione e Temporaneità

**What are the clouds?**

**The Academy of Santa Sofia in Benevento** represents one of the most prestigious and appreciated cultural realities in the Italian territory. It is an environment where music is not simply performed, but becomes an integral part of the very identity of the institution, much more than just a simple artistic programming. Its strength lies in the constant pursuit of artistic excellence and the ability to establish a deep and engaging dialogue with the audience, bringing to **Benevento, Rome, Naples, and abroad**, internationally renowned artists with proposals capable of combining tradition and contemporary flair.
**“What are the clouds?” by Petra Magoni and Ilaria Fantin** is a musical project that stands out for its symbiotic duo nature, able to convey fleeting and transitory emotions, just like clouds. The work develops through a varied repertoire that includes pieces by artists such as **Sinéad O'Connor, Fabrizio De André, Domenico Modugno, Joni Mitchell, Deep Purple, and others**, creating an intense and magnetic atmosphere that deeply engages the listener. The very title evokes lightness and transience: an emotional journey made of sounds and words, capable of leaving a profound mark.

**Petra Magoni and Ilaria Fantin**, with their interpretations, capture this essence, offering a refined and profoundly engaging musical experience. Emotions and fleeting moments, like clouds, are explored through a varied repertoire interpreted with delicate sensitivity by the two artists. The concert is thus announced as a truly special event: it not only enriches the season but embodies its essence and spirit fully. I listened to Petra Magoni live many years ago, while I only knew this duo through online recordings, which I have highly appreciated. Together, they manage to fill silence with sonic emotions: **Magoni's voice** effortlessly traverses the registers and styles of great interpreters, while **the ancient instrument (the archlute) played by Ilaria Fantin** is not a mere accompaniment but constructs real soundscapes in which the voice can breathe, expand, and reveal itself.
The repertoire is a journey through time and emotions, capable of blending Renaissance polyphonies, folk songs, and personal revisitations of modern pieces. What strikes one is not so much the variety of the repertoire but the stylistic coherence: each piece seems sculpted from the same material, an expression of minimalism not seen as mere reduction, but as absolute precision — a mutual listening that transforms into a complete form. The voice opens up in an intimate dialogue with the listener, conveying every emotional nuance, while the archlute becomes the guardian of deep and evocative sound memories.
**Petra Magoni** offers an authentic and fearless way of singing: every little nuance, every pause, every timbre variation tells a unique story. There is no self-satisfaction or virtuosic display for its own sake, but a rare ability to transform every song into a direct and unfiltered confession. Beside her, **Ilaria Fantin** builds a counterpoint of extraordinary refinement with her archlute, evoking distant eras and traditions that converse with the present. Her presence on stage, discreet yet intense, supports and enhances the subtlest shades of the voice.
The concert fully reflects the artistic mission of the **Academy of Santa Sofia**, which has always been committed to excellence, research, and profound emotional involvement. It offers the audience a moment of care and beauty, in an age when music risks being consumed too quickly.

*Salvatore Orlando*
artistic consultant
“SONIC BRIDGES” Academy of Santa Sofia
Web: www.accademiadisantasofia.i...