Sunday, May 24, 2009
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
What the future may look like
Once I heard about a concept which was similiar to this - based on the work of the United Nations, designed to enable creation from sub atomic particles and harvesting the molecular structure from the atmosphere.
Monday, December 29, 2008
2008 Christmas Concert
The films above will play sequentially
The Italian Consulate in Queensland and Northern Territory in conjunction with Co.AS.It present the 2008 Christmas Concert. Filmed and edited by Alessandro Sorbello http://www.alessandrosorbello.com/ for New Realm Media http://www.newrealm.com.au/ and hosted by Damian Anthony Rossi. A Vespa Studios project http://www.vespastudios.com/ Featuring Anna Maria La Spina http://www.anna.com.au/ and Mark Watson and Featuring the Australian Girls Choir and Zosia Kilmartin http://zosiakilmartin.com/
Following last year’s tradition, this Consulate of Italy, in cooperation with Co.As.It. Brisbane, organized a free concert to celebrate Christmas together with the Italian Community and the whole city of Brisbane.
The Concert took place at the Old Museum of Brisbane (Gregory Terrace, Bowen Hills), on Sunday December, 14th 2008, from 3pm to 5pm.
Performing Artists included Anna Maria La Spina (http://www.anna.com.au/), two world tours with the 20 million album selling group "Savage Garden", accompanied by the pianist Mark Watson and the Australian Girls Choir (http://www.ausgirlschoir.com.au/) who will sang traditional Christmas carols. Zosia Kilmartin also performed at the concert which was enjoyed by over 500 people
Italian Panettone and Champagne will be served after the concert, thanks to the kind support of Com.It.Es. for Queensland and Northern Territory.
Hoping to have the opportunity of wishing you all a Merry Christmas on this occasion
I send you my best regards
Francesco Capecchi
Consul of Italy
For QLD and NT
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Rome on A Motorcycle
Rome as seen from the back of a motorcycle. My friend Vasco Petruzzi and I spent a most pleasant Sunday morning touring around Rome and visiting the sights. This 7 minute film shows highlights of Rome and a street view of the Eternal City
Piazza del Campidoglio (on the Capitol Hill) is the headquarter of the Italian Government; Piazza Venezia represents the 'heart of the city'; Piazza Navona displays the spectacular Baroque triumphant architecture; Piazza di Spagna is a masterpiece of the XVIII century with its famous Spanish steps and, last but not least, St Peter's Square is the majestic access to St Peter's Basilica, the centre of Christianity.
Roman basilicas and churches. Within Rome there are about 19 basilicas to be found, out of which 3 are patriarchal: St Peter's Basilica - the world's largest basilica of Christianity; St John in Lateran (San Giovanni Laterano) - former seat of the bishops residence and the most ancient church in the world, Santa Maria Maggiore... Ancient Rome sights, Colosseum The hugest structure of its type in the ancient Rome, the elliptical-shaped Colosseum, took about ten years to build. The centre of ancient Rome entertainment, where the gladiatorial and animal combats were held, surely the top tourist attraction in Rome.
Roman Forum The central area around which the ancient Rome developed. Administrative and corporate heart of Rome.Pantheon One of the most impressive buildings of the Imperial Rome. Originally dedicated as a temple to "all the gods", therefore the name. Roman Aqueducts Baths of Caracalla Catacombs Appian Way Vatican Sights Castel Sant' Angelo St Peter's Square Saint Peter's Basilica Rome fountains, Trevi Fountain, Fontana di Trevi, one of the top Rome's attractions that is never to be missed.
There are times walking around the centre of Rome when you may feel that tourism is the city's raison d'etre. That's not entirely true, but tourists are certainly spoiled for choice in the Eternal City. In this expanding section of our Rome destination guide, we'll pick out some of the top tourist attractions and endeavour to put them into some kind of context.Colosseum - Rome's most famous tourist attraction Castel Sant'Angelo - built as Hadrian's mausoleum, later a Papal fortress Catacombs - underground burial complexes with early Christian frescoes and carvings
Rome Zoo, the Bioparco - Rome's zoo is in the Villa Borghese area and adds variety to a family holidayRoman houses on the Celio hill. Capitoline Museums - the best of Rome's ancient statuary, Centrale Montemartini - Roman sculptures and mosaics displayed in a former electricity generating plant. Museo di Roma (Palazzo Braschi) - Museum of Rome, in the Centro Storico, Museo della Civiltà Romana - Roman history, portrayed through plaster replicas and models. Museo Nazionale delle Arti e Tradizioni Popolari - folk art and traditions, Museo dell'Alto Medioevo - museum of the Middle Ages in Italy. Galleria Spada - small art gallery housed in a pretty palazzo. Galleria Borghese (book in advance) - superb collection of paintings and statues. Palazzo Barberini - another collection of paintings, Museo Barracco - small and attractive collection of ancient sculpture, Museo della Pasta - Pasta Museum
Pantheon - one of the best-preserved and loveliest buildings from the Ancient World. Trevi Fountain - dramatic fountain famed for coin-throwing. Vittoriano - big ugly white monument with good views (pay for access by lift to the highest panoramic terrace). Teatro di Marcello - Roman theatre later converted into residence. Via Appia Antica - the old Roman Appian Way lined with ruined tombs and archaeological sites. Protestant Cemetery - peaceful spot where Keats is buried. Scala Santa - Holy Staircase - pilgrimage destination. Basilica of San Giovanni in Laterano Rome's cathedral. Abbazia delle Tre Fontane - little-visited abbey out of town.
The Most beautiful Hole in Rome ( la buca piu bella di roma)
The Aventine Keyhole - For those in the know, this is a popular attraction. Locals bring their visitors here to admire the impressive optical effect created by Piranesi. It doesn't sound that wonderful; some trees and St. Peter's, but few leave uncharmed. Located in the artistic and enigmatic Piazza dei Cavalieri di Malta, a gate bars the entrance to the Priory of the Knights of Malta. Queue up to have a look through the ornate keyhole, and you'll see the Vatican's vast white cathedral floating at the end of a symmetrical tunnel of trimmed trees.The piazza is placed on the Aventine Hill (Aventino), which is a nice tranquil place to stroll on a sunny day. To reach the keyhole, you follow Via di Santa Sabina from the Circo Massimo (Circus Maximus) past a rose garden, two attractive churches and a couple of delightful panoramic parks. One, a walled garden filled with orange trees, hosts outdoors theatre in the summer months.
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Giulio Rapetti, Mogol al Centro Europeo di Toscolano
On My recent trip to Umbria in Italy, The Italian Consul and I visited the Centro Europeo Toscolano founded by the great MOGOL (see profile below) we hope to commence a collaboration with CET and that they will tour to Australia next year as part of Italian Week 2009. This footage shows the amazing Music Acadamy founded by MOGOL.
Giulio Rapetti (born August 17, 1936 in Milan), in art Mogol, is an Italian lyricist. He is best known for his collaborations with Lucio Battisti.
His father, Mariano Rapetti, was an important director of the Ricordi record label, and had been in his own time a successful lyricist of the 1950s. Young Giulio, who was likewise employed by Ricordi as a public relations expert, began his own career as a lyricist against his father's wishes.
His first successes were Il cielo in una stanza ("Heaven in a room" or "The sky in a room"), set to music by Gino Paoli and sung by Mina; Al di là ("Beyond"), a piece that won the 1961 Sanremo Festival when performed by Luciano Tajoli and Betty Curtis; Una lacrima sul viso ("A tear on the face"), which was a huge hit for Bobby Solo in 1964. Another famous song from 1961 was Uno dei tanti (English: One from many) which was rewritten by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller in 1963 and released under the title "I (Who Have Nothing)".
In addition to writing new lyrics in Italian for a great many singers, Mogol also took it upon himself, in years in which familiarity with the English language in Italy was still sparse, to translate many hits from overseas, especially film soundtracks, but also works of Bob Dylan.
In 1965 he met Lucio Battisti, a young guitarist and composer from the Latium region of central Italy. Mogol's lyrics contributed to Battisti's initial success as an author, in megahits such as 29 settembre, and led him to undertake the role of producer as well, as happened with the song Sognando la California, which Mogol himself had translated from the signature number of The Mamas and the Papas, California Dreamin', and with Senza luce ("Without light"), an Italian rendering of A Whiter Shade of Pale by Procol Harum.
In 1966, Mogol, overcoming resistance from his record label, convinced Battisti to perform his own songs. The lyricist's intuition would have one of the most rewarding outcomes of the history of Italian music, as Battisti, after a halting start, would explode as a singer, becoming one of the most successful artists in the panorama of Italian music. In the same year, Mogol left the Ricordi label to create his own with Battisti, called Numero Uno, which brought together many celebrated Italian singer-songwriters. The pair wrote songs as well for Bruno Lauzi, Patty Pravo, and, especially, Mina.
In 1980, Mogol broke the artistic relationship with Battisti, and successfully continued his independent career as a lyricist with the noted singer-songwriter Riccardo Cocciante, with whom he wrote the texts for some successful albums, first in the series Cervo a Primavera ("Deer in springtime").
Lately, with the work of Cocciante moving in other directions, Mogol has formed a stable partnership with Adriano Celentano; his songs for Celentano are scored by the Sicilian singer-songwriter Gianni Bella. This collaboration has produced the delicate song L'arcobaleno ("The rainbow"), included in the CD Io non so parlar d'amore ("I know not how to speak of love"), which is considered openly dedicated to Battisti, who had recently died.
Friday, November 7, 2008
Dr Vinton Cerf in Brisbane
On March 8th 2007, I interviewed Dr. Vinton G. Cerf and presented him to the Australian Media at a press conference which I organised. Currently I am producing ‘Internet, Infinity and Beyond’ the DVD based on Dr Cerf’s Presentation at the Brisbane Convention Centre, you can see elements of the presentation on the film clip.
You can also see the story screened by the Ten Network in Brisbane. You may like to see the photo gallery of the Press Conference.
Hear and Say Centre wins national award! - Dr Vinton Cerf, co-founder of the internet and the 2007 keynote speaker at the Hear and Say Centre’s biggest fundraising event, addressed 750 of Brisbane’s top business leaders and the message was clear - people with a disability such as deafness can overcome it and make world changing discoveries. Read more
Vinton G. Cerf is vice president and Chief Internet Evangelist for Google. In this role, he is responsible for identifying new enabling technologies to support the development of advanced Internet-based products and services from Google. He is also an active public face for Google in the Internet world. Widely known as of the ‘Founder of the Internet’, Cerf is the co-designer of the TCP/IP protocols and the architecture of the Internet. In December 1997, President Clinton presented the U.S. National Medal of Technology to Cerf and his colleague, Robert E. Kahn, for founding and developing the Internet. Kahn and Cerf were named the recipients of the ACM Alan M. Turing award, sometimes called the "Nobel Prize of Computer Science," in 2004 for their work on the Internet protocols. In November 2005, President George Bush awarded Cerf and Kahn the Presidential Medal of Freedom for their work. The medal is the highest civilian award given by the United States to its citizens.
In December 1994, People magazine identified Cerf as one of that year's ‘25 Most Intriguing People.’
Dr Cerf has recently retired as chairman of ICANN - have a look at the tributes paid to him from Internet Leaders including Vint Cerf by Vice President Al Gore.
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