Ravello Festival 2011
Amalfi Coast Accommodation Suggestions
Events
Ravello Festival 2011
Where
Ravello (Amalfi Coast)
When
From the July 8 until August27th, 2011
Ravello Festival Calendar
What
Whither are you bound?
- Always homeward.
(Novalis, “Heinrich von Ofterdingen”)
In all ages Ravello has been at the crossroads of different cultures, making it a celebrated goal for travellers, whether adventurers, merchants, intellectuals or holiday makers. Irrespective of the motives which induce people to come and savour the atmosphere of Ravello, invariably finding themselves enthralled by it, it exerts a fatal attraction on impulses and emotions, generating a sort of entropy of the spirit which is every bit as beguiling as the one that conquered von Aschenbach in “Death in Venice”, without however being so lethal.
In his collection of travel writings entitled “L’infinito viaggiare”, Claudio Magris affirms that “there are places which fascinate because they seem radically different, and others which enchant because from the first there is something familiar about them, almost as if you’d been born here.… For the known and familiar, continually rediscovered and enriched, are the necessary prelude to any encounter, seduction, adventure”.
This Festival aspires to creating opportunities for encounters, to seduce, and to assert itself as a genuine cultural adventure. That’s why it does indeed resemble a journey, with Ravello as a privileged destination but at the same time a point of departure, capable, like no other perhaps, of providing stimuli and soliciting a healthy intellectual curiosity.
Music, dance, and the spoken and written word are the instruments of a rite which has united Festival goers for over half a century, bringing them together - to use Magris’s formulation - in a place at once alien and familiar, happily divided between the urge to discovery and the pleasure of recognition. For surely it is this conscious progress towards attainable beauty - no less remarkable for being accessible - that constitutes the most gratifying attribute of journeying. In our unconfessed desire to be reunited once more in Ravello, to enjoy and take part in a Festival that looks out onto the world at large, the exaltation at setting out and the elation of homecoming are subtly mingled. When all is said and done, is not the perfect journey circular…?
Why you shouldn't miss it
The full moon concerts are absolutely marvellous; a sensory experience of rare beauty, that will make you truly feel part of the perfect harmony of creation.
Why you should experience it
When culture and art touch even the simplest heart or mind, you can't go wrong; you are at Ravello Festival.
To be avoided if
you don't want to scale a mountain to reach Klinsor's gardens or lose yourself in Lady Chatterly's arms. Ravello can be a bit difficult to reach if you don't know how to organize your time. Ask the locals about it and don't think for a minute that culture is of little interest here: finding a ticket to many of the concerts and events is no simple chore.
How to get there
By bus: From Amalfi.
By car: SS163, direction Amalfi- Salerno.
Timetable
If you decide to go to Ravello for a concert, plan on arriving quite a bit ahead of time. You might like to take a good part of the day and go up slowly on foot.
If you have some extra time
The road that connects Amalfi to Ravello is abounding in cellars, trattorias and wineries that offer tastings. You can film your own version of 'Sidewalks', stopping every now and again to taste the excellent, locally-produced wines. We can guarantee you that the views will put those of the Napa Valley to shame and the wines of Ravello are famous all over the world.
Ravello is ideal for doing some sophisticated, high-end shopping. The corals, cameos, goldwork, antiques, art books, precious classical music engravings and well-made ceramics are truly marvels not to miss out on. Even if you are 'just looking' don't miss the windows of the charming little shops.
