Showing posts with label Italian Beat. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Italian Beat. Show all posts

01/07/2025

War for fresh meat

 
The brothers Guido De Angelis (1944) and Maurizio De Angelis (1947) are two Italian composers and musicians; their musical career started in 1963, where, after successfully publishing an LP, they became arrangers for RCA Italiana. Their success led to many more albums in which they composed, arranged, and sang the music.
 
The De Angelis brothers were among the most prolific Italian musicians of the 1970s. In fact, they were forced to use different names for many of their projects to avoid over-saturating the market. One of these was Oliver Onions, which eventually became the name they were mostly identified with. Although they released many standalone albums, it is for their soundtrack work for which the De Angelis brothers are best known. Out of their many scores, which includes the main theme for the 1983 Italian cult movie Yor, the Hunter from the Future, undoubtedly the most famous and popular are those composed for the Terence Hill and Bud Spencer comedies. Their song "Dune Buggy" for the film Watch Out, We're Mad reached the top of the charts in Europe.
 
They are also known for their work on animated series, having composed original songs for Italian-dubbed anime (such as Doraemon, Ashita no Joe and Galaxy Express 999) and European series (such as Around the World with Willy Fog). They made music also for title song of Sandokan serie, which was based on the novel E. Salgari.
 

06/06/2024

Dark pleasures of the flesh

 
Nora Orlandi (1933) is an Italian pop singer, composer and pianist, also the author of some very strange psychedelic Giallo-soundtracks.

30/03/2024

The soil is nourished by white blood

 
Piero Umiliani (17 July 1926 - 14 February 2001) was an Italian composer of film scores. Like many of his Italian colleagues at that time, he composed the scores for many exploitation films in the 1960s and 1970s, covering genres such as Spaghetti Westerns, Eurospy, Giallo, and softcore sex films.

His composition "Mah Nà Mah Nà" (1968) was originally used in Sweden: Heaven and Hell, a 1968 Mondo documentary about Sweden. Umiliani's other scores included Son of Django, Orgasmo, Gangster's Law, Death Knocks Twice, Five Dolls for an August Moon,Baba Yaga and The Slave and Sex Pot.
 

Music to wear a red beret

 
Ittiologia is an Italian Library music compilation made by Cardium Label (includes Alessandro Alessandroni, Amedeo Tommasi, Atmo and Franco Tamponi).
 

29/03/2024

Submerged in deadly waters

 
Luciano Michelini (1945) is an Italian composer, arranger, conductor, pianist and organist, well known by film scores as The Island of the Fishmen (1979), The Suspicious Death of a Minor (1975) and The Cheaters (1975).
 

The roar precedes the popular uprising

 
Alessandro Alessandroni (1925, Rome, Italy - 2017, Rome, Italy) was an Italian composer, arranger, vocalist, whistler, conductor and multi-instrumentalist (guitar, sitar, keyboards, mandolin, mandocello, accordion, banjo, flute, harmonica, jew's harp, recorder, melodica and ocarina). He was the founder of the vocal ensemble I Cantori Moderni di Alessandroni. Husband of Margaret Courtney-Clarke. Previously married to Giulia Alessandroni (Kema) until her death in 1984.
 
Also collaborated with his childhood friend Ennio Morricone on a number of soundtracks for Spaghetti Westerns. Morricone's orchestration often calls for an unusual combination of instruments, voices, and whistling. Alessandroni's twangy guitar riff is central to the main theme for The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Alessandroni can be heard as the whistler on the soundtracks for Sergio Leone's films, including A Fistful of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More, Once Upon a Time in the West, and Pervirella. He also collaborated with Morricone in scoring the 1974 film Around the World with Peynet's Lovers.
 
He founded the octet vocal group I Cantori Moderni in 1961. The group, which included his wife, Giulia De Mutiis, performed wordless vocals on several Italian movie soundtracks. Most notably, I Cantori Moderni are featured on the song "Mah Nà Mah Nà", written by Piero Umiliani for the 1968 Luigi Scattini mondo film Svezia, inferno e paradiso and popularized on The Muppets Show
 
Alessandro has also composed film scores, including Any Gun Can Play (1967), Johnny Hamlet (1968), The Reward's Yours... The Man's Mine (1969), Lady Frankenstein (1971), The Devil's Nightmare (1971), The Mad Butcher (1971), Seven Hours of Violence (1973), Sinbad and the Caliph of Baghdad (1973), Poker in Bed (1974), White Fang and the Hunter (1975), Blood and Bullets (1976), L'adolescente (1976), La professoressa di scienze naturali (1976), The Opening of Misty Beethoven (1976), Women's Camp 119 (1977), Killer Nun (1978), L'imbranato (1979), and Trinity Goes East (1998).
 

The danger of secret societies

 
Ennio Morricone (1928-2020) was an Italian composer, orchestrator, conductor, and former trumpet player, writing in a wide range of musical styles. Since 1961, Morricone composed over 400 scores for cinema and television, as well as over 100 classical works.
 

28/09/2023

For the passion of lovers

 
Piero Piccioni was a highly skilled pianist and organist, he played regularly for friends in the Italian film world and it was director Michelangelo Antonioni ("Blow Up"; "Zabriskie Point") who first suggested he try to compose for the big screen.
 
He started to work under the psuedonym of Piero Morgan and specialised in a soft jazz style; especially for comedian/director Alberto Sordi. He also worked with Alberto Lattuada ("I Dolci Inganni", 1965), Vittorio De Sica ("After The Fox, 1966), Luchino Visconti ("The Stranger", 1967), Roberto Rossellini and many more including Francesco Rosi ("Salvatore Giuliano", 1961 "Le Mani Sulla Citta, 1963, "Il Momento Della Verità", 1965 "Il Caso Mattei, 1972 and their final film "Cronaca Di Una Morte Annunciata, 1986). 

He died on July 23, 2004 in Rome at age of 82.

Piero Piccioni - The Seduction Of Piero Piccioni

05/04/2023

Overwhelmed by the vertigo of modernity

 
Alessandro Alessandroni (1925, Rome, Italy - 2017, Rome, Italy) was an Italian composer, arranger, vocalist, whistler, conductor and multi-instrumentalist (guitar, sitar, keyboards, mandolin, mandocello, accordion, banjo, flute, harmonica, jew's harp, recorder, melodica and ocarina). He was the founder of the vocal ensemble I Cantori Moderni di Alessandroni. Husband of Margaret Courtney-Clarke. Previously married to Giulia Alessandroni (Kema) until her death in 1984.
 
Also collaborated with his childhood friend Ennio Morricone on a number of soundtracks for Spaghetti Westerns. Morricone's orchestration often calls for an unusual combination of instruments, voices, and whistling. Alessandroni's twangy guitar riff is central to the main theme for The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Alessandroni can be heard as the whistler on the soundtracks for Sergio Leone's films, including A Fistful of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More, Once Upon a Time in the West, and Pervirella. He also collaborated with Morricone in scoring the 1974 film Around the World with Peynet's Lovers.
 
He founded the octet vocal group I Cantori Moderni in 1961. The group, which included his wife, Giulia De Mutiis, performed wordless vocals on several Italian movie soundtracks. Most notably, I Cantori Moderni are featured on the song "Mah Nà Mah Nà", written by Piero Umiliani for the 1968 Luigi Scattini mondo film Svezia, inferno e paradiso and popularized on The Muppets Show.  
 
Alessandro has also composed film scores, including Any Gun Can Play (1967), Johnny Hamlet (1968), The Reward's Yours... The Man's Mine (1969), Lady Frankenstein (1971), The Devil's Nightmare (1971), The Mad Butcher (1971), Seven Hours of Violence (1973), Sinbad and the Caliph of Baghdad (1973), Poker in Bed (1974), White Fang and the Hunter (1975), Blood and Bullets (1976), L'adolescente (1976), La professoressa di scienze naturali (1976), The Opening of Misty Beethoven (1976), Women's Camp 119 (1977), Killer Nun (1978), L'imbranato (1979), and Trinity Goes East (1998).
 

22/02/2023

Surrounded by spring butterflies

 
Alessandro Alessandroni (1925, Rome, Italy - 2017, Rome, Italy) was an Italian composer, arranger, vocalist, whistler, conductor and multi-instrumentalist (guitar, sitar, keyboards, mandolin, mandocello, accordion, banjo, flute, harmonica, jew's harp, recorder, melodica and ocarina). He was the founder of the vocal ensemble I Cantori Moderni di Alessandroni. Husband of Margaret Courtney-Clarke. Previously married to Giulia Alessandroni (Kema) until her death in 1984.
 
Also collaborated with his childhood friend Ennio Morricone on a number of soundtracks for Spaghetti Westerns. Morricone's orchestration often calls for an unusual combination of instruments, voices, and whistling. Alessandroni's twangy guitar riff is central to the main theme for The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Alessandroni can be heard as the whistler on the soundtracks for Sergio Leone's films, including A Fistful of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More, Once Upon a Time in the West, and Pervirella. He also collaborated with Morricone in scoring the 1974 film Around the World with Peynet's Lovers.
 
He founded the octet vocal group I Cantori Moderni in 1961. The group, which included his wife, Giulia De Mutiis, performed wordless vocals on several Italian movie soundtracks. Most notably, I Cantori Moderni are featured on the song "Mah Nà Mah Nà", written by Piero Umiliani for the 1968 Luigi Scattini mondo film Svezia, inferno e paradiso and popularized on The Muppets Show. 
 
Alessandro has also composed film scores, including Any Gun Can Play (1967), Johnny Halet (1968), The Reward's Yours... The Man's Mine (1969), Lady Frankenstein (1971), The Devil's Nightmare (1971), The Mad Butcher (1971), Seven Hours of Violence (1973), Sinbad and the Caliph of Baghdad (1973), Poker in Bed (1974), White Fang and the Hunter (1975), Blood and Bullets (1976), L'adolescente (1976), La professoressa di scienze naturali (1976), The Opening of Misty Beethoven (1976), Women's Camp 119 (1977), Killer Nun (1978), L'imbranato (1979), and Trinity Goes East (1998).
 

21/02/2023

Pain reflected in multiple eyes

 
Ennio Morricone (1928-2020) was an Italian composer, orchestrator, conductor, and former trumpet player, writing in a wide range of musical styles. Since 1961, Morricone composed over 400 scores for cinema and television, as well as over 100 classical works.
 

17/12/2022

Killing into athmospheric LSD

 
Gianni Ferrio (1924 - 2013) was an Italian composer, arranger, and conductor; co-composer of the famous song "Parole, Parole". As an experienced television conductor; he was the musical director of the 1959 and 1962 editions of the San Remo Song Festival as well as the 1965 Eurovision Song Contest, held in Naples. 

04/11/2022

Strange drops on the abandoned body

 
Bruno Nicolai (1926, Rome - 1991, Rome) was an Italian composer, conductor and keyboardist (organ, piano). Notably the composer and director of numerous film and television scores. He also served as musical director for other composers' film scores, prevalently those of Ennio Morricone, Carlo Rustichelli and Luis Enriquez Bacalov. 

Nicolai studied piano, organ and composition at Conservatorio di Santa Cecilia, studying piano under Aldo Mantia, and composition and organ under Goffredo Petrassi. Whilst at the conservatory, he met fellow student Ennio Morricone who also studied under Petrassi. A friendship began that would last many years.

Throughout the 60's and 70's, Nicolai scored a number of films, working several times with directors such as Jess Franco, Tinto Brass and Alberto De Martino for their giallo and exploitation films. During this time, he also composed library music, primarily for his own labels Gemelli and Edi-Pan, but also for other labels like RCA. His big break came in 1965, when he was musical supervisor for the Sergio Leone film "For a Few Dollars More", scored by Ennio Morricone. In 1966, he reprised this role for "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly". Nicolai's last score was for the 1988 TV series "La coscienza di Zeno", directed by Sandro Bolchi.

 

21/10/2022

Life in dangerous times

 
Alessandro Alessandroni (1925, Rome, Italy - 2017, Rome, Italy) was an Italian composer, arranger, vocalist, whistler, conductor and multi-instrumentalist (guitar, sitar, keyboards, mandolin, mandocello, accordion, banjo, flute, harmonica, jew's harp, recorder, melodica and ocarina). He was the founder of the vocal ensemble I Cantori Moderni di Alessandroni. Husband of Margaret Courtney-Clarke. Previously married to Giulia Alessandroni (Kema) until her death in 1984.

Also collaborated with his childhood friend Ennio Morricone on a number of soundtracks for Spaghetti Westerns. Morricone's orchestration often calls for an unusual combination of instruments, voices, and whistling. Alessandroni's twangy guitar riff is central to the main theme for The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Alessandroni can be heard as the whistler on the soundtracks for Sergio Leone's films, including A Fistful of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More, Once Upon a Time in the West, and Pervirella. He also collaborated with Morricone in scoring the 1974 film Around the World with Peynet's Lovers.
 
He founded the octet vocal group I Cantori Moderni in 1961. The group, which included his wife, Giulia De Mutiis, performed wordless vocals on several Italian movie soundtracks. Most notably, I Cantori Moderni are featured on the song "Mah Nà Mah Nà", written by Piero Umiliani for the 1968 Luigi Scattini mondo film Svezia, inferno e paradiso and popularized on The Muppets Show.

Alessandro has also composed film scores, including Any Gun Can Play (1967), Johnny Hamlet (1968), The Reward's Yours... The Man's Mine (1969), Lady Frankenstein (1971), The Devil's Nightmare (1971), The Mad Butcher (1971), Seven Hours of Violence (1973), Sinbad and the Caliph of Baghdad (1973), Poker in Bed (1974), White Fang and the Hunter (1975), Blood and Bullets (1976), L'adolescente (1976), La professoressa di scienze naturali (1976), The Opening of Misty Beethoven (1976), Women's Camp 119 (1977), Killer Nun (1978), L'imbranato (1979), and Trinity Goes East (1998).

Alessandro Alessandroni - Atmosfera Bellica

31/08/2022

Lost in a coral forest

 
Bruno Zambrini (April 5, 1935) is an Italian musician and record producer. Zambrini graduated in composition at the Santa Cecilia Conservatory; in the 1960s he became a successful composer of pop songs, notably signing several hits by Gianni Morandi and Patty Pravo's "La bambola. Also active as a record producer, Zambrini composed many musical film scores, often collaborating with Andrea and Paolo Amati.

Bruno Zambrini - Racconti Di Mare

10/07/2022

Overcoming the force of gravity

 
(Gerardo Iacoucci is an Italian composer and pianist; combining all the traits of an international superhero or intrepid comic book adventurer, the true identity, whereabouts and history of the spectacular Italian composer known as Gerardo Iacoucci has been a mystery to record collectors for many years.
 
As a result of the best efforts of secretive archivists and DJs as well as and the overprotective force field that surrounds the clandestine world of Italian library music, the commanding experimental psychedelic pop music made singlehandedly by this early pioneer of the anti-genre time after time rises to the top of collectors’ want lists, commands huge ransom notes, ignites dancefloors and decimates genre tags before returning to its mythical status as one of the kings of the underworld without removing his mask. 
 
Despite the fact that original Italian copies of records by Gerardo Iacoucci are amongst the rarest, enigmatic fixtures of European psychedelia, his music simply refuses to be ghettoised and as the name of this album suggests the history of this artist reads like the memoirs of a genuine musical adventurer as well as a well-travelled prophet of experimental music and unsung pillar of Italian jazz and sound design).

23/03/2022

Nocturnal adventures madness

 
Bruno Nicolai (1926, Rome - 1991, Rome) was an Italian composer, conductor and keyboardist (organ, piano). Notably the composer and director of numerous film and television scores. He also served as musical director for other composers' film scores, prevalently those of Ennio Morricone, Carlo Rustichelli and Luis Enriquez Bacalov. 

Nicolai studied piano, organ and composition at Conservatorio di Santa Cecilia, studying piano under Aldo Mantia, and composition and organ under Goffredo Petrassi. Whilst at the conservatory, he met fellow student Ennio Morricone who also studied under Petrassi. A friendship began that would last many years.

Throughout the 60's and 70's, Nicolai scored a number of films, working several times with directors such as Jess Franco, Tinto Brass and Alberto De Martino for their giallo and exploitation films. During this time, he also composed library music, primarily for his own labels Gemelli and Edi-Pan, but also for other labels like RCA. His big break came in 1965, when he was musical supervisor for the Sergio Leone film "For a Few Dollars More", scored by Ennio Morricone. In 1966, he reprised this role for "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly". Nicolai's last score was for the 1988 TV series "La coscienza di Zeno", directed by Sandro Bolchi.

Bruno Nicolai - Geminus

27/02/2022

Travelling across misteries

 
Piero Umiliani (July 17, 1926 Florence - February 14, 2001 Rome) was an Italian composer of film scores and library music who was also behind the Omicron label and the Sound Work Shop label & Sound Work-Shop Studio, and cofounder of Liuto Edizioni Musicali. In his long career he composed and recorded 190 soundtracks, 40 library albums and 35 TV title themes.

He became most famous for his song "Mah Nà Mah Nà" of 1968, that was originally used for a Mondo documentary about Sweden (Svezia, Inferno e Paradiso) and became world-famous in 1977 when performed for The Muppet Show. Like many of his Italian colleagues at that time, he composed the scores for many exploitation films in the 1960s and 1970s, covering genres such as spaghetti western, Eurospy, Giallo, and soft sex films. Although not as widely regarded as, for example, Ennio Morricone or Riz Ortolani, he helped form the style of the typical European '60s/'70s jazz-influenced film soundtrack that later experienced a revival in films like Kill Bill and Ocean's Twelve.