We have already published a fairly long article about the Befana this week (it can be seen here) but a small film arrived in the offices of barganews this morning that we really could not pass up on.
During the night of the Befana there were a handful of groups playing around the city one of which contained a number of musicians who generally play at the Barga Jazz Club.
Not only did they play the traditional version of the Befana but towards the end of what was a long evening, also played a version much closer to their collective jazz hearts.
no images were found
Luckily for us, the staff at the Bar Roma were on the ball not just with the hot punch and recorded the Befana Jazz version on a cell phone. The quality is not the best but this is so far the only record that we have of this Befana version although it has been played for a few years now. It comes out of the dusty cupboard but once a year. Grab it while you may.
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The narrow streets of Barga Vecchia this evening were full of shuffling, scruffy, well aged and generally dirty looking specimens of humanity and all where having a singularly wonderful time – the Befana and her Befanotti were celebrating. Nobody is really sure of how or when this tradition started but for generations on the evening of January 5th, groups of people dressed up as the Befana and her badly dressed followers – the Befanotti would move from house to house singing the praises of the Befana.
One line of thought is that the custom started when some shrewd desperate low life characters worked out that begging dressed in false beards, inside out jackets and faces smeared with soot pretending to be Befanotti actually bought better rewards. The song they sing does end in asking for gifts, usually food which is then shared out amongst the Befanotti at the end of the evening. Whatever the origins, one thing was certain, all were having a great time as they danced and sang the night away.
W il bar Roma, grande Lanfra