Le macchiette interculturali di Renato Carosone

Abstract

The article wants to demonstrate that some of Renato Carosone’s most successful songs, written together with Nicola Salerno in the 1950s (in particular “Tu vuò fa’ l’americano”, “Torero”, “Caravan petrol” and “‘O pellirossa”), are tightly inspired by the ironic and satirical portraits of the 'macchietta napoletana’. Focusing on protagonists who attempt to imitate the behaviors or fashions of other cultures, the analyzed songs reveal an intercultural approach, based on a conception of cultures as distinct or even competing spheres. This attitude is very clear especially at the level of lyrics, also because the proclaimed opinions follow from the point of view of the ‘people’, whereas the music and, even more, the theatrical performances of Carosone’s formations sometimes create a more complex subtlety which can measure up to transculturality, as in the case of “Tu vuò fa’ l’americano”.