Iginio De Luca's Iailat: An Anagrammatic Deconstruction of Italy's National Anthem

Iginio De Luca (born 1966 in Formia, lives in Rome) created the sound work Iailat, an anagram of 'Italia,' which distorts the Italian national anthem into an almost unrecognizable form. The project began with an installation at the Sound Corner of the Auditorium della Musica di Roma in February 2018. During the political elections the following month, De Luca used the sound in a public space blitz. On December 20, 2019, the piece culminated in a live performance for the event L'Inaugurazione, curated by VILLAM, in Piazza Jan Palach in the Villaggio Olimpico, Rome. A ten-piece band performed the slowed-down anthem, making the original rhythm nearly impossible to discern. The title Iailat mirrors the concept: all the letters of 'Italia' are present but rearranged, just as the musical elements are present but distorted, questioning whether unity for Italy is still possible.