Re: Italian fireworks in San Severo

On May 28, 2:54 pm, "Maurice Schellekens" <maur...@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Hi all,

as some of you probably already know I returned from a short trip to San
Severo in Italy a few days ago. Thought it would be nice to share my
experiences with you.

On the third Sunday of May and the following Monday "La Festa del Soccorso"
(Festivity of Salvation) is celebrated in San Severo. As is usual with
religious festivities in Southern Europe this Festa is also accompanied with
fireworks.

In the region of San Severo a very typical type of fireworks is used. It is
called "La Batteria". These "Batterie" are related to the "Mascletás" from
Valencia (Spain). In short a "Mascletá" consists of several strings of loud
firecrackers, which explode in a certain rhythm working up to a culmination
of explosions. A "Mascletá" is often referred to as "Una Sinfonía del Ruido"
(A Symphony of Noise).

This development can also be seen, heard and felt in a "Batteria", but
instead a "Batteria" is made up of only one string of firecrackers. The
length of a "Batteria" can range from several hundreds of metres to a few
kilometres. They are usually set up in the (small) streets and run along
several streets of a block. The big ones are set up in more open spaces like
townsquares or fields of grass alongside the streets.

Of course, a big "Batteria" contains bigger firecrackers. Mind you, that
some of the largest "firecrackers" in a big "Batteria" are 3 inch
groundsalutes and filled with high quality (Italian) flashpowder (which
means that they are loud and can be felt at a distance of several tens of
metres). However, no matter the size of the firecrackers in a "Batteria" the
people will try to outrun it (sort of like the bull-running in Pamplona
(Spain)). Definately not my kind of soup, but I just had to experience this
type of event with my own senses (from a respectable distance).

For those that are interested, here's a wiki-page with more info about the
origin of this Festa and this typical kind of fireworks (La Batteria). It is
in
Italian, but Babelfish will help.http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Festa_del_Soccorso_%28San_Severo%29

Next to the "Batterie" there was also a fireworkscompetition for daylight
displays and nighttime displays. During the day 3 companies participated and
at night 4. Pictures and movies of all this can be found in the links below.

Picture album:http://freakpyromaniacs.com/album/index.php/cat/1310
Movie album:http://www.freakpyromaniacs.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=362
General thread:http://www.freakpyromaniacs.com/forum/showthread.php?t=13129

Please be advised.................. These albums are not yet complete. I've
already uploaded my pictures, but my friends of the FPM-crew are working
very hard to get their movies and pictures online. So stay tuned the
following days.

Enjoy,
Maurice

PS It could be possible that it's required to register to download the
movies.
I know some people don't like to register to get access to downloads, but
it's a legitimate and trustworthy website. And just maybe you'll like to
join the discussions in the English section of the forum after your
registration.

Beautiful, Maurice. Thank's for putting those up.

If anyone hasn't checked out the "Freak Pyro" site, there is a
treasure trove of stills and video clips there from our fellow
fanatics in the Netherlands.

John

.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Italian fireworks in San Severo
    ... as some of you probably already know I returned from a short trip to San ... Severo in Italy a few days ago. ... instead a "Batteria" is made up of only one string of firecrackers. ... Pictures and movies of all this can be found in the links ...
    (rec.pyrotechnics)
  • Italian fireworks in San Severo
    ... as some of you probably already know I returned from a short trip to San ... Severo in Italy a few days ago. ... instead a "Batteria" is made up of only one string of firecrackers. ... Pictures and movies of all this can be found in the links below. ...
    (rec.pyrotechnics)