Tammorra Festival

An evening of tammurriate in the heart of Irpinia

The Tammorra Festival is the event with which San Michele di Serino, a small town in the Province of Avellino, Campania, inaugurates its summer season. Organized by the Pro Loco "Sabe Maioris", the event brings the deep, hypnotic sound of the frame drum back to the town square—the instrument that has accompanied festivals, pilgrimages, and agrarian rites in the South for centuries.

This is not a concert in the classical sense: it is a village festival where musicians, dancers, and the public share the same space. Tammurriate are born on the street, they move, they multiply, and passersby are easily drawn into the circle. It is one of the most genuine opportunities to understand what folk music in Campania still means today.

The tammorra: instrument and ritual

The tammorra is a large frame drum with metal jingles, widespread throughout the region and linked in particular to Marian festivals and the agricultural calendar. Its rhythm supports the tammurriata, a couple's song and dance where dancers face each other without ever touching, marking time with castanets and their bodies. It is an ancient language, made of glances and precision, speaking of the land, field work, love, and celebration.

• Traditional Campania folk songs, from the peasant repertoire to the devotional one
• Ballo sul tamburo (dance on the drum), with improvised figures and constant partner changes
• Roaming tammorra and accordion players through the town center
• Moments of open participation, welcoming even to those who have never danced before
• Food stalls with local seasonal products

The eighth edition, on World Music Day

The 2025 edition, the eighth in the series, took place on Saturday, June 21, coinciding with World Music Day. On stage was the Battista Band, a group now synonymous with the festival, and guest Biagio De Prisco with his "Voice of Tradition" repertoire, accompanied by roaming tammorra and accordion players. In previous editions, the event spanned two days in Piazza Municipio, featuring a route through street artists, spontaneous tammurriate, and guests such as A Lumanera and the Tarantellati di Volturara.

Irpinian flavors between dances

Alongside the music, stalls managed by Pro Loco volunteers offer seasonal local specialties: garden produce, cheeses, cured meats, and wines from Irpinia, a land of famous denominations such as Taurasi, Fiano di Avellino, and Greco di Tufo. It is the part of the evening when the festival slows down and becomes a convivial occasion, before the drum starts beating again and the square fills up once more.

San Michele di Serino, a village in the Sabato Valley

With just over two thousand five hundred inhabitants, San Michele di Serino is located at an altitude of about 360 meters in the Sabato Valley, a few kilometers from Avellino and at the foot of the Picentini Mountains. The patron saint, Saint Michael the Archangel, is celebrated on September 29. The local economy is historically agricultural: the town is part of the "Cities of the Potato" circuit, and the Potato Festival, also organized by the Pro Loco, is the other major event in the summer calendar. The Tammorra Festival serves as its musical prelude.

Towards the 2026 edition

At the moment, the Pro Loco "Sabe Maioris" has not yet released the dates and program for the new edition of the Tammorra Festival. Historically, the event falls in the second half of June, at the start of summer, but until the official announcement arrives, it is best to check the association's channels. Those who wish to plan ahead can follow the Pro Loco's Facebook page or contact the organizers directly: the confirmation of the dates, as every year, arrives close to the event.