Folk Media APS has been dedicated for over twenty years to studying and documenting the history and culture of Italy’s “Territori Musicali,” which represent a truly unique heritage in the world. Our country is fortunate to host the most significant collection of popular festivals, sounds, and dances. Indeed, Alan Lomax—the world’s most prominent ethnomusicologist—came to Italy in 1954–55 to conduct his legendary documentation campaign. He was so deeply struck by the richness and beauty of what he encountered that he described that period as “the happiest year of his life.”
For years, we have followed in the footsteps of Alan Lomax and many other researchers who traversed our peninsula far and wide. Today, we have finally succeeded in organizing, expanding, and making accessible to all the fruits of our labor. The “Territori Musicali” archive, with over one thousand videos, constitutes one of Italy’s most important audiovisual documentation databases of festivals, music, and dance—all freely and freely accessible.