Natalino Otto
Encyclopedia
Natalino Otto, stage name
of Natale Codognotto (25 December 1912 - 4 October 1969) was an Italian
singer. He started the swing genre
in Italy
.
, province of Genoa
, in northern Italy
.
His career as a singer and musician
started in the clubs of his native region, Liguria
. During 1930s he worked as an entertainer on board transatlantic liners on the routes between Europe
and North America
, which gave him the opportunity to get to know American music genres, especially jazz
and swing.
In 1935 he was hired by an Italian-American radio
station in New York
. Back in Italy
in 1937, Otto presented an innovative repertoire, strongly influenced by American music of that era. But he had to face Italian Fascist regime
censorship, that banned anything foreign. He was forced to translate song titles and lyrics into Italian
. The Italian state radio company EIAR did not broadcast his songs, and labelled them as "barbaric negro antimusic".
Banned from the radio, Natalino Otto worked for recording companies instead, together with two great Italian bandleader
s such as Gorni Kramer
and Pippo Barzizza
. In a short while he won the audience with his records - one of the few Italian singers of those times, if not the only one, to achieve success without his songs playing on the radio. Italian people danced to his swing tunes, which earned him the nickname "King of Rhythm".
industry wanted him. He was offered singer roles in a few films. He was the leading character in Tutta la città canta
directed by Riccardo Freda
in 1945. He also starred in La casa senza tempo and Carosello del varietà.
During 1950s Natalino Otto took part for five times to the Sanremo Music Festival. His best result was a third place in 1955 with a song titled "Canto nella Valle". In that year he married Flo Sandon's
, also an Italian singer.
Early in 1960s Otto retired from the public scene, but he continued to be involved in show organization, recordings and musical research.
He died in Milan
in 1969.
Natalino Otto and his wife Flo Sandon's
are credited with the discovery of one of Italy's greatest singers of all times - Mina
. On the night of 24 September 1958 the Happy Boys, a band of teen-age students was playing in the Rivaloro del Re dance hall, Cremona
. Otto and his wife were present, and were greatly impressed by the singer of that group. They went to meet her at the end of the concert and proposed her a trial recording session. One month later, Mina's first single was out.
Stage name
A stage name, also called a showbiz name or screen name, is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers such as actors, wrestlers, comedians, and musicians.-Motivation to use a stage name:...
of Natale Codognotto (25 December 1912 - 4 October 1969) was an Italian
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...
singer. He started the swing genre
Swing (genre)
Swing music, also known as swing jazz or simply swing, is a form of jazz music that developed in the early 1930s and became a distinctive style by 1935 in the United States...
in 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...
.
Early years
Natalino Otto was born at CogoletoCogoleto
Cogoleto is a comune in the Province of Genoa in the Italian region Liguria, located about 25 km west of Genoa. Its territory extends from the sea to the Ligurian Apennines; it is part of the Natural Regional Park of Monte Beigua....
, province of Genoa
Province of Genoa
The Province of Genoa is a province in the Liguria region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Genoa.It has an area of 1,838 km², and a total population of about 900,000...
, in northern 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...
.
His career as a singer and musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
started in the clubs of his native region, Liguria
Liguria
Liguria is a coastal region of north-western Italy, the third smallest of the Italian regions. Its capital is Genoa. It is a popular region with tourists for its beautiful beaches, picturesque little towns, and good food.-Geography:...
. During 1930s he worked as an entertainer on board transatlantic liners on the routes between 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...
and North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, which gave him the opportunity to get to know American music genres, especially jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
and swing.
In 1935 he was hired by an Italian-American radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
station in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. Back in 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...
in 1937, Otto presented an innovative repertoire, strongly influenced by American music of that era. But he had to face Italian Fascist regime
Fascism
Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood...
censorship, that banned anything foreign. He was forced to translate song titles and lyrics into Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
. The Italian state radio company EIAR did not broadcast his songs, and labelled them as "barbaric negro antimusic".
Banned from the radio, Natalino Otto worked for recording companies instead, together with two great Italian bandleader
Bandleader
A bandleader is the leader of a band of musicians. The term is most commonly, though not exclusively, used with a group that plays popular music as a small combo or a big band, such as one which plays jazz, blues, rhythm and blues or rock and roll music....
s such as Gorni Kramer
Gorni Kramer
Gorni Kramer was an Italian songwriter, musician and band leader.- Biography :He was born Kramer Gorni at Rivarolo Mantovano . Despite the exotic sound of Gorni Kramer in Italian language, which lead part of his audience to believe he was a foreigner or had adopted a fancy pseudonym, it was his...
and Pippo Barzizza
Pippo Barzizza
Pippo Barzizza was an Italian Maestro and composer.Born in Genoa, he conducted the Italian radio's orchestra between 1935 and 1943, returned at work about in 1960s, after a long pause after the World War II....
. In a short while he won the audience with his records - one of the few Italian singers of those times, if not the only one, to achieve success without his songs playing on the radio. Italian people danced to his swing tunes, which earned him the nickname "King of Rhythm".
Cinema and Sanremo Festival
Thanks to his popularity, also the movieFilm
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
industry wanted him. He was offered singer roles in a few films. He was the leading character in Tutta la città canta
Tutta la città canta
Tutta la città canta is a 1945 Italian comedy film directed by Riccardo Freda. It was shown as part of a retrospective on Italian comedy at the 67th Venice International Film Festival.-Cast:* Nino Taranto - Il maestro elementare...
directed by Riccardo Freda
Riccardo Freda
Riccardo Freda was an Egyptian-born Italian film director. Best known for his horror and thriller movies, Freda had no great love for the horror films he was assigned, but rather favored the epic sword and sandal pictures...
in 1945. He also starred in La casa senza tempo and Carosello del varietà.
During 1950s Natalino Otto took part for five times to the Sanremo Music Festival. His best result was a third place in 1955 with a song titled "Canto nella Valle". In that year he married Flo Sandon's
Flo Sandon's
Mammola Sandon, known by the stage name of Flo Sandon's , was an Italian singer who was popular in the post-WWII years. She won the Sanremo Music Festival in 1953 with the song "Viale d'autunno".-Career:...
, also an Italian singer.
Early in 1960s Otto retired from the public scene, but he continued to be involved in show organization, recordings and musical research.
He died in Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
in 1969.
Overview
Natalino Otto was a very prolific singer. He recorded over two thousand songs during his career. His greatest hits were "Ho un sassolino nella scarpa", "Mamma voglio anch'io la fidanzata", "Mister Paganini", "Polvere di stelle", "Op op trotta cavallino", "Natalino studia canto", "Il valzer del boogie-woogie", "La classe degli asini".Natalino Otto and his wife Flo Sandon's
Flo Sandon's
Mammola Sandon, known by the stage name of Flo Sandon's , was an Italian singer who was popular in the post-WWII years. She won the Sanremo Music Festival in 1953 with the song "Viale d'autunno".-Career:...
are credited with the discovery of one of Italy's greatest singers of all times - Mina
Mina (singer)
Anna Maria Quaini, Grand Officer , known as Mina, is an Italian pop singer. She was a staple of Italian television variety shows and a dominant figure in Italian pop music from the mid-1960s to mid-1970s known for her three-octave vocal range, the agility of her soprano voice, and her image as an...
. On the night of 24 September 1958 the Happy Boys, a band of teen-age students was playing in the Rivaloro del Re dance hall, Cremona
Cremona
Cremona is a city and comune in northern Italy, situated in Lombardy, on the left bank of the Po River in the middle of the Pianura Padana . It is the capital of the province of Cremona and the seat of the local City and Province governments...
. Otto and his wife were present, and were greatly impressed by the singer of that group. They went to meet her at the end of the concert and proposed her a trial recording session. One month later, Mina's first single was out.