Premiata Forneria Marconi
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| - | The '''Italian progressive rock''' scene was born in the early 70s, mostly inspired by the ''[[Progressive rock|progressive]]'' movement in [[United Kingdom|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 (band)|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 (band)|Area]] and [[Banco del Mutuo Soccorso]]. Most of the bands, however, were mainly known inside Italy. | + | '''Premiata Forneria Marconi''' ('''PFM''') (translation: ''Award-winning Marconi Bakery'') is an [[Italy|Italian]] [[progressive rock]] band founded in 1970 and which continues to the present day. They were the first Italian group to have success internationally. The group recorded five albums with English lyrics between 1973 and 1977. During this period they entered both the [[United Kingdom|British]] and [[United States|American]] charts. They also had several successful [[Europe]]an and [[Americas|American]] tours, playing at the popular [[Reading Festival]] in England and on a very popular national television program in the United States. |
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| - | 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 (band)|Celeste]] being re-evaluated as core bands, despite the fact that they were virtually unknown in Italy at the time. | + | |
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| - | 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 (band)|Finisterre]], [[Deus Ex Machina (band)|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. | + | |
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| - | ==Hallmarks== | + | |
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| - | 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. This was the case with highly-regarded bands such as [[Cervello]], [[Museo Rosenbach]], [[Alusa Fallax]], [[Apoteosi]], [[Murple (band)|Murple]], [[Alphataurus]], [[Gruppo 2001]], [[Locanda Delle Fate]], [[Maxophone]] and [[Semiramis (band)|Semiramis]]. | + | |
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| - | One very noticeable defining feature of Italian progressive rock in the 1970s is the extensive use of [[Mixolydian]] and [[Dorian mode|Dorian]] scales, rather than just the more common [[Ionian mode|Ionian]] and [[Aeolian mode]]s (or, major and minor). Every PFM album contains at least one Mixolydian or Dorian song. | + | |
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| - | === Symphonic rock bands === | + | |
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| - | Italy's symphonic rock boomed in 1972, after the successes of [[Van der Graaf Generator]]'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. | + | |
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| - | 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. | + | |
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| - | Bands like [[New Trolls]], [[Osanna]], [[Metamorfosi (band)|Metamorfosi]], [[Alphataurus]], [[Semiramis (band)|Semiramis]] and [[Biglietto per l'Inferno]] had a harder edge, but still with traits of the symphonic tradition. | + | |
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| - | === More experimental bands === | + | |
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| - | [[Franco Battiato]]'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. | + | |
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| - | In the latter half of the decade, several bands more directed towards contemporary music or [[Rock in Opposition|RIO]] emerged, such as [[Picchio dal Pozzo]], [[Opus Avantra]] and [[Stormy Six]]. | + | |
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| - | === Newer bands === | + | |
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| - | Bands such as [[Finisterre (band)|Finisterre]], [[La Maschera di Cera]], [[Deus Ex Machina (band)|Deus Ex Machina]], [[DFA (band)|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. | + | |
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| - | ==Timeline== | + | |
| - | ===Before 1971=== | + | |
| - | English [[progressive rock]] bands such as [[Genesis (band)|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]]. | + | |
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| - | [[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. | + | |
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| - | ===1971=== | + | |
| - | In this year, [[New Trolls]] released the seminal ''[[Concerto Grosso per i New Trolls]]'', a collaboration with [[Luis Enriquez Bacalov]]. It was a mix of ''[[canzone|canzoni]]'', [[Rock music|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 (Le Orme album)|Collage]]''. | + | |
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| - | ===1972-1974=== | + | |
| - | In 1972, a creative explosion suddenly occurred, with [[Premiata Forneria Marconi|PFM]], [[Banco del Mutuo Soccorso]], [[Il Balletto di Bronzo]], [[Le Orme]], [[Quella Vecchia Locanda]], [[Metamorfosi (band)|Metamorfosi]], [[Museo Rosenbach]]. [[Ibis]], [[Il Rovescio della Medaglia]], [[Alusa Fallax]], [[Alphataurus]] and more releasing their most acclaimed works. | + | |
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| - | ===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 [[RIO]] and [[minimalist music]]. Examples are [[Stormy Six]], [[Picchio dal Pozzo]], [[Franco Battiato]]'s [[Clic!]] and [[Pierrot Lunaire (band)|Pierrot Lunaire]]. | + | |
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| - | ==Concept albums== | + | |
| - | * [[New Trolls]]' ''[[Senza orario senza bandiera]]'', which was the first true concept album in Italian music history, being published as early as 1968. | + | |
| - | * [[Le Orme]]'s ''[[Felona e Sorona]]'', about two distinct, distant planets- one full of love and warmth, the other cold and dreary. | + | |
| - | * [[Banco del Mutuo Soccorso]]'s ''[[Darwin!]]'', about [[Darwin's]] travels to the Galapagos Islands and his [[theory of evolution]]. | + | |
| - | * [[Metamorfosi]]'s ''Inferno'', based on [[Dante]]'s Inferno. | + | |
| - | * [[Museo Rosenbach]]'s ''[[Zarathustra (album)|Zarathustra]]'', based on central parts of [[Friedrich Nietzsche]]'s philosophy. | + | |
| - | * [[Murple (band)|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 Medaglia]]'s ''Contaminazione'', based on [[Bach]]'s [[Well-tempered Clavier]]. | + | |
| - | * [[Alusa Fallax]]'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 Bronzo]]'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 Six]]'s ''Un biglietto del tram'', based on events from the last years of World War II | + | |
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| - | ==See also== | + | |
| - | * [[Music of Italy]] | + | |
| - | * [[Progressive rock]] | + | |
| - | * [[Neo-progressive rock]] | + | |
| + | PFM introduced new sounds, such as the [[synthesizer]], to the Italian musical world. They were also among the first to combine [[symphonic music|symphonic]] [[classical music|classical]] and traditional [[Music of Italy|Italian musical]] influences in a [[rock music]] context. Such innovations and their longevity have earned PFM a place among the most important bands in the Progressive rock genre. | ||
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Premiata Forneria Marconi (PFM) (translation: Award-winning Marconi Bakery) is an Italian progressive rock band founded in 1970 and which continues to the present day. They were the first Italian group to have success internationally. The group recorded five albums with English lyrics between 1973 and 1977. During this period they entered both the British and American charts. They also had several successful European and American tours, playing at the popular Reading Festival in England and on a very popular national television program in the United States.
PFM introduced new sounds, such as the synthesizer, to the Italian musical world. They were also among the first to combine symphonic classical and traditional Italian musical influences in a rock music context. Such innovations and their longevity have earned PFM a place among the most important bands in the Progressive rock genre.
Unless indicated otherwise, the text in this article is either based on Wikipedia article "Premiata Forneria Marconi" or another language Wikipedia page thereof used under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License; or on research by Jahsonic and friends. See Art and Popular Culture's copyright notice.
