Italian progressive rock
Encyclopedia
The Italian progressive rock scene was born in the early 70s, mostly inspired by the progressive
movement in Britain
, but with certain features of its own that makes some sources mention it as a separate musical genre.
In the early-to-mid-70s, Italy
was one of the Europe
an countries most interested in this genre; many English bands such as Genesis
, Van der Graaf Generator
and Gentle Giant
were discovered by the Italian public before they had consolidated a fan base in their home country. Consequently, progressive Italian groups were prolific. Some received worldwide attention, such as Le Orme
, Premiata Forneria Marconi
, Area
and Banco del Mutuo Soccorso
. Most of the bands, however, were mainly known inside Italy.
As CD reissues started appearing and the Internet made information flow easier during the 1990s, the Italian bands were discovered and rediscovered by a number of progressive rock fans internationally. Reissues proved so successful that several recordings which were never released at the time received their first pressings on CD in the 1990s and 2000s. The "discovery" of Italian progressive rock by foreign fans also led to bands such as Celeste being re-evaluated as core bands, despite the fact that they were virtually unknown in Italy at the time.
The 1990s also saw a resurgence in bands performing progressive rock. The first of the well known bands to do so was Ezra Winston, but other groups such as Finisterre, Deus Ex Machina
, Delirio Sonoro and Moongarden
soon established themselves as well respected progressive rock acts. More recently La Torre dell'Alchimista and La Maschera di Cera have carried on the Italian progressive rock tradition, sporting a very 1970's style.
, Museo Rosenbach
, Alusa Fallax
, Apoteosi, Murple, Alphataurus
, Gruppo 2001, Locanda Delle Fate, Maxophone
and Semiramis
. Some bands, such as Buon Vecchio Charlie, produced a single album and were unable to even get it released at the time, only to be rediscovered decades later thanks to the efforts of specialist progressive rock labels and the online community of progressive rock fans.
One very noticeable defining feature of Italian progressive rock in the 1970s is the extensive use of Mixolydian and Dorian
scales, rather than just the more common Ionian
and Aeolian mode
s (or, major and minor). Every PFM album contains at least one Mixolydian or Dorian song.
's Pawn Hearts
, which was number one in Italy's charts for 12 weeks early that year. The scene more or less ran dry by the end of 1975. http://www.gnosis2000.net Owing to the difficulty of making a living as a rock band, many bands from Italy released only one or two albums before disappearing.
The most popular bands, such as Banco del Mutuo Soccorso
, Premiata Forneria Marconi
and Le Orme
, played symphonic rock
heavily influenced by classical music, against the backdrop of the Italian canzone
tradition.
Bands like New Trolls
, Osanna
, Metamorfosi
, Alphataurus
, Semiramis
and Biglietto per l'Inferno
had a harder edge, but still with traits of the symphonic tradition.
's 1970s output showed influences from electronic music. While his first albums can be called symphonic or progressive rock
, his work became increasingly inaccessible, incorporating musique concrète
and serial music. The willingness to experiment culminated in L'Egitto prima delle sabbie in 1978, where one chord is repeated throughout each LP side. After this, he turned more commercial, eventually earning huge national success.
In the latter half of the decade, several bands more directed towards contemporary music or RIO
emerged, such as Picchio dal Pozzo, Opus Avantra and Stormy Six
.
, DFA, Germinale, Bread For Teethless, Mary Newsletter
and Il Bacio Della Medusa have made an impact since the progressive scene experienced a slight revival in the 1990s.
bands such as Genesis
were popular in Italy. In 1970, releases by Italian bands, however, still favoured American-style psychedelic rock
, such as Osanna
, Le Orme
and Il Balletto di Bronzo
.
Banco del Mutuo Soccorso
had already refined their progressive rock sound, as is evident from their recently released Live record recorded that year, but they did not release anything until 1972.
released the seminal Concerto Grosso per i New Trolls, a collaboration with Luis Enriquez Bacalov
. It was a mix of canzoni
, rock
and classical music
, and helped put symphonic rock
on the map in Italy. Other notable releases were I Giganti
's concept album
Terra in Bocca, Buon Vecchio Charlie's self-titled symphonic rock album, and Le Orme
's organ-based album Collage
.
, Banco del Mutuo Soccorso
, Il Balletto di Bronzo
, Le Orme
, Quella Vecchia Locanda, Metamorfosi
, Museo Rosenbach
. Ibis
, Il Rovescio della Medaglia
, Alusa Fallax
, Alphataurus
and more releasing their most acclaimed works.
and minimalist music
. Examples are Stormy Six
, Picchio dal Pozzo, Franco Battiato
's Clic! and Pierrot Lunaire
.
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
movement in Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, but with certain features of its own that makes some sources mention it as a separate musical genre.
In the early-to-mid-70s, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
was one of the Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an countries most interested in this genre; many English bands such as Genesis
Genesis (band)
Genesis are an English rock band that formed in 1967. The band currently comprises the longest-tenured members Tony Banks , Mike Rutherford and Phil Collins . Past members Peter Gabriel , Steve Hackett and Anthony Phillips , also played major roles in the band in its early years...
, Van der Graaf Generator
Van der Graaf Generator
Van der Graaf Generator are an English progressive rock band, formed in 1967 in Manchester. They were the first act signed to Charisma Records. The band achieved considerable success in Italy during the 1970s...
and Gentle Giant
Gentle Giant
Gentle Giant were a British progressive rock band active between 1970 and 1980. The band was known for the complexity and sophistication of its music and for the varied musical skills of its members. All of the band members, except the first two drummers, were multi-instrumentalists...
were discovered by the Italian public before they had consolidated a fan base in their home country. Consequently, progressive Italian groups were prolific. Some received worldwide attention, such as Le Orme
Le Orme
Le Orme is an Italian progressive rock band formed in 1966 in Marghera, a frazione of Venice. The band was one of the major groups of the Italian progressive rock scene in the 1970s...
, Premiata Forneria Marconi
Premiata Forneria Marconi
Premiata Forneria Marconi is an Italian progressive rock band. They were the first Italian group to have success abroad, entering both the British and American charts. Between 1973 and 1977 they released five albums with English lyrics...
, Area
Area (band)
Area - International POPular Group, most commonly known as Area or AreA, is an Italian progressive rock, jazz fusion, electronic, experimental groupb) “It was the mid-1970s and live events roused enthusiasm as never before; they fulfilled the need to be together and the illusion of continuing as a...
and Banco del Mutuo Soccorso
Banco del Mutuo Soccorso
Banco del Mutuo Soccorso is an Italian rock band. A popular progressive rock band in the 1970s, they continued making music in the 1980s and 1990s...
. Most of the bands, however, were mainly known inside Italy.
As CD reissues started appearing and the Internet made information flow easier during the 1990s, the Italian bands were discovered and rediscovered by a number of progressive rock fans internationally. Reissues proved so successful that several recordings which were never released at the time received their first pressings on CD in the 1990s and 2000s. The "discovery" of Italian progressive rock by foreign fans also led to bands such as Celeste being re-evaluated as core bands, despite the fact that they were virtually unknown in Italy at the time.
The 1990s also saw a resurgence in bands performing progressive rock. The first of the well known bands to do so was Ezra Winston, but other groups such as Finisterre, Deus Ex Machina
Deus Ex Machina (band)
Deus Ex Machina is an Italian Progressive rock group. Members include Claudio Trotta , Alessandro Porreca Maurino Collina , Alessandro Bonetti Fabrizio Puglisi and Alberto Piras .-Discography:...
, Delirio Sonoro and Moongarden
Moongarden
Moongarden is an Italian Progressive rock group who tour internationally. They have been compared to Porcupine Tree, Marillion or Genesis. The group records and distributes their music on Galileo Records....
soon established themselves as well respected progressive rock acts. More recently La Torre dell'Alchimista and La Maschera di Cera have carried on the Italian progressive rock tradition, sporting a very 1970's style.
Hallmarks
Italian progressive rock encompassed a number of different styles. The Italian progressive scene produced a large number of bands releasing one record before disappearing into obscurity (although some such bands would reunite decades later and produce more material). This was the case with highly-regarded bands such as CervelloCervello
Its also a swedish band with the name Cervello.Cervello is the name of an Italian rock band of the early 1970s.Cervello was formed by musician from Naples...
, Museo Rosenbach
Museo Rosenbach
Museo Rosenbach is an Italian progressive rock band whose album Zarathustra, in spite of the limited success it scored in the 1970s, is today considered a cornerstone of the genre.- History :...
, Alusa Fallax
Alusa Fallax
Alusa Fallax were an Italian symphonic rock band.They released only one LP, Intorno alla mia cattiva educazione , considered a masterpiece in some progressive rock circles ....
, Apoteosi, Murple, Alphataurus
Alphataurus
Coming from the Milan area, Alphataurus are an Italian hard rock/progressive rock band that only released one album, Alphataurus, in 1973, at the peak of the European progressive rock wave...
, Gruppo 2001, Locanda Delle Fate, Maxophone
Maxophone
Maxophone are an Italian Progressive rock band formed in Milan in 1973. They released one self-titled album in 1975. The group was one of the few rock artists signed by the Produttori Associati record label, which focused mostly on film soundtracks and Jazz...
and Semiramis
Semiramis (band)
Semiramis is an Italian teen-ager progressive rock band who produced one LP in 1973, Dedicato a Frazz. Both the cover and the music have been described as bizarre and surrealist.- History :...
. Some bands, such as Buon Vecchio Charlie, produced a single album and were unable to even get it released at the time, only to be rediscovered decades later thanks to the efforts of specialist progressive rock labels and the online community of progressive rock fans.
One very noticeable defining feature of Italian progressive rock in the 1970s is the extensive use of Mixolydian and Dorian
Dorian mode
Due to historical confusion, Dorian mode or Doric mode can refer to three very different musical modes or diatonic scales, the Greek, the medieval, and the modern.- Greek Dorian mode :...
scales, rather than just the more common Ionian
Ionian mode
Ionian mode is the name assigned by Heinrich Glarean in 1547 to his new authentic mode on C , which uses the diatonic octave species from C to the C an octave higher, divided at G into a fourth species of perfect fifth plus a third species of perfect fourth : C D...
and Aeolian mode
Aeolian mode
The Aeolian mode is a musical mode or, in modern usage, a diatonic scale called the natural minor scale.The word "Aeolian" in the music theory of ancient Greece was an alternative name for what Aristoxenus called the Low Lydian tonos , nine semitones...
s (or, major and minor). Every PFM album contains at least one Mixolydian or Dorian song.
Symphonic rock bands
Italy's symphonic rock boomed in 1972, after the successes of Van der Graaf GeneratorVan der Graaf Generator
Van der Graaf Generator are an English progressive rock band, formed in 1967 in Manchester. They were the first act signed to Charisma Records. The band achieved considerable success in Italy during the 1970s...
's Pawn Hearts
Pawn Hearts
Pawn Hearts is the fourth album by English progressive rock band Van der Graaf Generator, released in October 1971. The album reached number 1 on Italian album charts.-Differences between the European and North American releases:...
, which was number one in Italy's charts for 12 weeks early that year. The scene more or less ran dry by the end of 1975. http://www.gnosis2000.net Owing to the difficulty of making a living as a rock band, many bands from Italy released only one or two albums before disappearing.
The most popular bands, such as Banco del Mutuo Soccorso
Banco del Mutuo Soccorso
Banco del Mutuo Soccorso is an Italian rock band. A popular progressive rock band in the 1970s, they continued making music in the 1980s and 1990s...
, Premiata Forneria Marconi
Premiata Forneria Marconi
Premiata Forneria Marconi is an Italian progressive rock band. They were the first Italian group to have success abroad, entering both the British and American charts. Between 1973 and 1977 they released five albums with English lyrics...
and Le Orme
Le Orme
Le Orme is an Italian progressive rock band formed in 1966 in Marghera, a frazione of Venice. The band was one of the major groups of the Italian progressive rock scene in the 1970s...
, played symphonic rock
Symphonic rock
Symphonic rock is a sub-genre of progressive rock. Since early in progressive rock's history, the term has been used sometimes to distinguish more classically influenced progressive rock from the more psychedelic and experimental forms of progressive rock....
heavily influenced by classical music, against the backdrop of the Italian canzone
Canzone
Literally "song" in Italian, a canzone is an Italian or Provençal song or ballad. It is also used to describe a type of lyric which resembles a madrigal...
tradition.
Bands like New Trolls
New Trolls
New Trolls are an Italian progressive rock band, known for their fusion of rock and classical music. Their history is filled with line-up changes, band name changes and struggles between band members.-History:...
, Osanna
Osanna
Osanna are an Italian psychedelic rock/progressive rock band.The group originated in the Vomero neighborhood of Naples with the union of Lino Vairetti , Danilo Rustici , Massimo Guarino , Lello Brandi , from the first line-up of the band Città Frontale, and Elio D'Anna , former member of the Showmen...
, Metamorfosi
Metamorfosi (band)
Metamorfosi are an Italian symphonic rock band from Rome.They have released three albums, ...E Fu Il Sesto Giorno , Inferno and Paradiso . The two latter are concept albums based on Dante's The Divine Comedy. Inferno in particular has received critical acclaim amongst progressive rock fans....
, Alphataurus
Alphataurus
Coming from the Milan area, Alphataurus are an Italian hard rock/progressive rock band that only released one album, Alphataurus, in 1973, at the peak of the European progressive rock wave...
, Semiramis
Semiramis (band)
Semiramis is an Italian teen-ager progressive rock band who produced one LP in 1973, Dedicato a Frazz. Both the cover and the music have been described as bizarre and surrealist.- History :...
and Biglietto per l'Inferno
Biglietto per l'Inferno
Biglietto per l'Inferno is an Italian progressive rock band whose album Biglietto per l'Inferno, in spite of the limited success it scored in the 1970s, is today considered a cornerstone of the genre.- History :...
had a harder edge, but still with traits of the symphonic tradition.
More experimental bands
Franco BattiatoFranco Battiato
Francesco Battiato is an Italian singer-songwriter, composer, filmmaker and, under the pseudonym Süphan Barzani, also a painter. Battiato's songs contain esoteric, philosophical and religious themes...
's 1970s output showed influences from electronic music. While his first albums can be called symphonic or progressive rock
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
, his work became increasingly inaccessible, incorporating musique concrète
Musique concrète
Musique concrète is a form of electroacoustic music that utilises acousmatic sound as a compositional resource. The compositional material is not restricted to the inclusion of sounds derived from musical instruments or voices, nor to elements traditionally thought of as "musical"...
and serial music. The willingness to experiment culminated in L'Egitto prima delle sabbie in 1978, where one chord is repeated throughout each LP side. After this, he turned more commercial, eventually earning huge national success.
In the latter half of the decade, several bands more directed towards contemporary music or RIO
Rock in Opposition
Rock in Opposition or RIO was a movement representing a collective of progressive bands in the late 1970s united in their opposition to the music industry that refused to recognise their music...
emerged, such as Picchio dal Pozzo, Opus Avantra and Stormy Six
Stormy Six
Stormy Six were an Italian progressive and folk rock band founded in Milan in 1966. They performed and recorded until 1983, mostly as a sextet but occasionally as a quartet, a quintet and a septet. Although their line-up changed considerably over the years, founding member Franco Fabbri remained...
.
Newer bands
Bands such as Finisterre, La Maschera di Cera, Deus Ex MachinaDeus Ex Machina (band)
Deus Ex Machina is an Italian Progressive rock group. Members include Claudio Trotta , Alessandro Porreca Maurino Collina , Alessandro Bonetti Fabrizio Puglisi and Alberto Piras .-Discography:...
, DFA, Germinale, Bread For Teethless, Mary Newsletter
Mary Newsletter
Mary Newsletter is an Italian rock band which released four records in the years from 1992 to 2005.Their sound started close to the Italian classic prog rock bands, eventually evolving towards psychedelic and electronic music....
and Il Bacio Della Medusa have made an impact since the progressive scene experienced a slight revival in the 1990s.
Before 1971
English progressive rockProgressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
bands such as Genesis
Genesis (band)
Genesis are an English rock band that formed in 1967. The band currently comprises the longest-tenured members Tony Banks , Mike Rutherford and Phil Collins . Past members Peter Gabriel , Steve Hackett and Anthony Phillips , also played major roles in the band in its early years...
were popular in Italy. In 1970, releases by Italian bands, however, still favoured American-style psychedelic rock
Psychedelic rock
Psychedelic rock is a style of rock music that is inspired or influenced by psychedelic culture and attempts to replicate and enhance the mind-altering experiences of psychedelic drugs. It emerged during the mid 1960s among folk rock and blues rock bands in United States and the United Kingdom...
, such as Osanna
Osanna
Osanna are an Italian psychedelic rock/progressive rock band.The group originated in the Vomero neighborhood of Naples with the union of Lino Vairetti , Danilo Rustici , Massimo Guarino , Lello Brandi , from the first line-up of the band Città Frontale, and Elio D'Anna , former member of the Showmen...
, Le Orme
Le Orme
Le Orme is an Italian progressive rock band formed in 1966 in Marghera, a frazione of Venice. The band was one of the major groups of the Italian progressive rock scene in the 1970s...
and Il Balletto di Bronzo
Il Balletto di Bronzo
Il Balletto di Bronzo was an Italian progressive rock band from Naples. They formed in the mid 1960s, and released two albums, Sirio 2222 and Ys, before disbanding in 1973....
.
Banco del Mutuo Soccorso
Banco del Mutuo Soccorso
Banco del Mutuo Soccorso is an Italian rock band. A popular progressive rock band in the 1970s, they continued making music in the 1980s and 1990s...
had already refined their progressive rock sound, as is evident from their recently released Live record recorded that year, but they did not release anything until 1972.
1971
In this year, New TrollsNew Trolls
New Trolls are an Italian progressive rock band, known for their fusion of rock and classical music. Their history is filled with line-up changes, band name changes and struggles between band members.-History:...
released the seminal Concerto Grosso per i New Trolls, a collaboration with Luis Enriquez Bacalov
Luis Enríquez Bacalov
Luis Enríquez Bacalov is a prolific Argentine, naturalized Italian, composer of film scores. Early on in his career, he composed scores for Spaghetti Western films. In the early 1970s, he collaborated with Italian progressive rock bands. Bacalov has been nominated twice for the Academy Award...
. It was a mix of canzoni
Canzone
Literally "song" in Italian, a canzone is an Italian or Provençal song or ballad. It is also used to describe a type of lyric which resembles a madrigal...
, rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
and classical music
Classical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
, and helped put symphonic rock
Symphonic rock
Symphonic rock is a sub-genre of progressive rock. Since early in progressive rock's history, the term has been used sometimes to distinguish more classically influenced progressive rock from the more psychedelic and experimental forms of progressive rock....
on the map in Italy. Other notable releases were I Giganti
I Giganti
I Giganti are an Italian band founded in 1964.In the 1960s, they released a number of hits. After this, they released a seminal concept album of Italian progressive rock in 1971, called Terra in bocca.I Giganti have released three full albums....
's concept album
Concept album
In music, a concept album is an album that is "unified by a theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, narrative, or lyrical." Commonly, concept albums tend to incorporate preconceived musical or lyrical ideas rather than being improvised or composed in the studio, with all songs contributing...
Terra in Bocca, Buon Vecchio Charlie's self-titled symphonic rock album, and Le Orme
Le Orme
Le Orme is an Italian progressive rock band formed in 1966 in Marghera, a frazione of Venice. The band was one of the major groups of the Italian progressive rock scene in the 1970s...
's organ-based album Collage
Collage (Le Orme album)
Collage is an album by the Italian progressive rock band Le Orme. It was released in 1971. It is the first progressive-like album by the band, who had previously recorded only the beat-oriented Ad Gloriam of 1968.-Songs:...
.
1972-1974
In 1972, a creative explosion suddenly occurred, with PFMPremiata Forneria Marconi
Premiata Forneria Marconi is an Italian progressive rock band. They were the first Italian group to have success abroad, entering both the British and American charts. Between 1973 and 1977 they released five albums with English lyrics...
, Banco del Mutuo Soccorso
Banco del Mutuo Soccorso
Banco del Mutuo Soccorso is an Italian rock band. A popular progressive rock band in the 1970s, they continued making music in the 1980s and 1990s...
, Il Balletto di Bronzo
Il Balletto di Bronzo
Il Balletto di Bronzo was an Italian progressive rock band from Naples. They formed in the mid 1960s, and released two albums, Sirio 2222 and Ys, before disbanding in 1973....
, Le Orme
Le Orme
Le Orme is an Italian progressive rock band formed in 1966 in Marghera, a frazione of Venice. The band was one of the major groups of the Italian progressive rock scene in the 1970s...
, Quella Vecchia Locanda, Metamorfosi
Metamorfosi (band)
Metamorfosi are an Italian symphonic rock band from Rome.They have released three albums, ...E Fu Il Sesto Giorno , Inferno and Paradiso . The two latter are concept albums based on Dante's The Divine Comedy. Inferno in particular has received critical acclaim amongst progressive rock fans....
, Museo Rosenbach
Museo Rosenbach
Museo Rosenbach is an Italian progressive rock band whose album Zarathustra, in spite of the limited success it scored in the 1970s, is today considered a cornerstone of the genre.- History :...
. Ibis
Ibis
The ibises are a group of long-legged wading birds in the family Threskiornithidae....
, Il Rovescio della Medaglia
Il Rovescio della Medaglia
Il Rovescio della Medaglia, or RDM, were an Italian hard rock and symphonic rock band. They are most famous for their symphonic rock masterpiece Contaminazione, released in 1973. It contained four pieces from Bach's Well-tempered Clavier seamlessly integrated with RDM's own music, which often was...
, Alusa Fallax
Alusa Fallax
Alusa Fallax were an Italian symphonic rock band.They released only one LP, Intorno alla mia cattiva educazione , considered a masterpiece in some progressive rock circles ....
, Alphataurus
Alphataurus
Coming from the Milan area, Alphataurus are an Italian hard rock/progressive rock band that only released one album, Alphataurus, in 1973, at the peak of the European progressive rock wave...
and more releasing their most acclaimed works.
RIO and minimalism, 1974-1980
In this period, the number of the typical symphonic albums released decreased dramatically, already by 1975–1976 the Italian style of symphonic rock was close to being annihilated. Perhaps as a replacement, there emerged a quite differing wave of avant-garde music, often with links to RIORock in Opposition
Rock in Opposition or RIO was a movement representing a collective of progressive bands in the late 1970s united in their opposition to the music industry that refused to recognise their music...
and minimalist music
Minimalist music
Minimal music is a style of music associated with the work of American composers La Monte Young, Terry Riley, Steve Reich, and Philip Glass. It originated in the New York Downtown scene of the 1960s and was initially viewed as a form of experimental music called the New York Hypnotic School....
. Examples are Stormy Six
Stormy Six
Stormy Six were an Italian progressive and folk rock band founded in Milan in 1966. They performed and recorded until 1983, mostly as a sextet but occasionally as a quartet, a quintet and a septet. Although their line-up changed considerably over the years, founding member Franco Fabbri remained...
, Picchio dal Pozzo, Franco Battiato
Franco Battiato
Francesco Battiato is an Italian singer-songwriter, composer, filmmaker and, under the pseudonym Süphan Barzani, also a painter. Battiato's songs contain esoteric, philosophical and religious themes...
's Clic! and Pierrot Lunaire
Pierrot Lunaire (band)
Pierrot Lunaire was an Avant-prog/Progressive folk band from Italy.Two albums were released: A self-titled one in 1974 and Gudrun in 1976....
.
Concept albums
- New TrollsNew TrollsNew Trolls are an Italian progressive rock band, known for their fusion of rock and classical music. Their history is filled with line-up changes, band name changes and struggles between band members.-History:...
' Senza orario senza bandiera, which was the first true concept album in Italian music history, being published as early as 1968. - Le OrmeLe OrmeLe Orme is an Italian progressive rock band formed in 1966 in Marghera, a frazione of Venice. The band was one of the major groups of the Italian progressive rock scene in the 1970s...
's Felona e SoronaFelona e SoronaFelona e Sorona is an album by the Italian progressive rock band Le Orme. It was released in 1973.Named one of the "finest examples of Italian progressive rock", it is a concept album pivoting on the story of two planets which revolve one around the other, without ever coming in contact...
, about two distinct, distant planets- one full of love and warmth, the other cold and dreary. - Banco del Mutuo SoccorsoBanco del Mutuo SoccorsoBanco del Mutuo Soccorso is an Italian rock band. A popular progressive rock band in the 1970s, they continued making music in the 1980s and 1990s...
's Darwin!Darwin!Darwin! is the second album by Banco del Mutuo Soccorso. It was released in 1972 on Ricordi. It is a concept album about Charles Darwin and his theory of evolution.The album is highly rated by progressive rock fans as one of the top albums in the genre....
, about Darwin's travels to the Galapagos Islands and his theory of evolution. - MetamorfosiMetamorfosiMetamorfosi is a suburb in the northern part of Athens, Greece, and a municipality of the Attica region...
's Inferno, based on DanteDANTEDelivery of Advanced Network Technology to Europe is a not-for-profit organisation that plans, builds and operates the international networks that interconnect the various national research and education networks in Europe and surrounding regions...
's Inferno. - Museo RosenbachMuseo RosenbachMuseo Rosenbach is an Italian progressive rock band whose album Zarathustra, in spite of the limited success it scored in the 1970s, is today considered a cornerstone of the genre.- History :...
's ZarathustraZarathustra (album)Zarathustra is a progressive rock album released in 1973 by the Italian band Museo Rosenbach.It is regarded by many authorities as one of the best Italian progressive rock works of all time.-Track listing:#"Zarathustra: L'Ultimo Uomo" – 3:55...
, based on central parts of Friedrich NietzscheFriedrich NietzscheFriedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche was a 19th-century German philosopher, poet, composer and classical philologist...
's philosophy. - Murple's Io Sono Murple, the story of a penguin who is taken into captivity.
- Blocco Mentale's POA, based on the preservation of nature.
- Il Rovescio della MedagliaIl Rovescio della MedagliaIl Rovescio della Medaglia, or RDM, were an Italian hard rock and symphonic rock band. They are most famous for their symphonic rock masterpiece Contaminazione, released in 1973. It contained four pieces from Bach's Well-tempered Clavier seamlessly integrated with RDM's own music, which often was...
's Contaminazione, based on BachBạchBạch is a Vietnamese surname. The name is transliterated as Bai in Chinese and Baek, in Korean.Bach is the anglicized variation of the surname Bạch.-Notable people with the surname Bạch:* Bạch Liêu...
's Well-tempered Clavier. - Alusa FallaxAlusa FallaxAlusa Fallax were an Italian symphonic rock band.They released only one LP, Intorno alla mia cattiva educazione , considered a masterpiece in some progressive rock circles ....
's Intorno alla mia cattiva educazione, the story of a boy with a strict upbringing who struggles to follow his own destiny. - I Teoremi, the album simply called I Teoremi, is one of the rarest Italian prog-era albums.
- Il Balletto di BronzoIl Balletto di BronzoIl Balletto di Bronzo was an Italian progressive rock band from Naples. They formed in the mid 1960s, and released two albums, Sirio 2222 and Ys, before disbanding in 1973....
's Ys, a narrative alluding to the legend of the mythical city of the same name. - Raccomandata con Ricevuta di Ritorno's Per... un mondo di cristallo, about an astronaut who returns to a lifeless Earth.
- Stormy SixStormy SixStormy Six were an Italian progressive and folk rock band founded in Milan in 1966. They performed and recorded until 1983, mostly as a sextet but occasionally as a quartet, a quintet and a septet. Although their line-up changed considerably over the years, founding member Franco Fabbri remained...
's Un biglietto del tram, based on events from the last years of World War II