Tarantella - History, Past and Today

History, Past and Today

In the Italian Taranto, Apulia, the bite of a locally common type of wolf spider, named "tarantula" after the region, was popularly believed to be highly poisonous and to lead to a hysterical condition known as tarantism. The stated belief in the 16th and 17th centuries were that the victims needed to engage in a frenzied dance to prevent death of the disease using very rhythmic music. This became known as the Tarantella. The oldest documents mentioning the relationship between musical exorcism and the tarantula are dated around 1100 BC. John Compton had proposed that ancient Bacchanalian rites had been suppressed by the Roman Senate. In 186 BC the tarantula went underground, reappearing under the guise of emergency therapy for bite victims.

The tradition persists in the area, and is known as "Neo-Tarantism." Many young artists, groups and famous musicians are continuing to keep the tradition alive. The music is very different—its tempo is faster, for one thing—but it has similar hypnotic effects, especially when people are exposed to the rhythm for a long period of time. The music is used in the therapy of patients with certain forms of depression and hysteria, and its effects on the endocrine system recently became an object of research.