Onda [Enhanced] Review

Much of Fiamma Fumana's music is founded upon Northern Italian traditional folk music, with many a nod to Scottish folk music as well. FF seasons these traditional sounds and themes with contemporary ideas - for example, waiting around in airports between flights, in "Check In" - and modern sounds - perhaps most notably, Medhin Paolos's electronica, which is laced throughout their albums; but also Lisa Kant's vocals, which sometimes strike a traditional, soulful stance, just as they at other times strike a modern rock pose. It is this amalgam of the traditional and the modern which is FF's defining characteristic.

Onda is a superb album. Lisa's vocals display remarkable virtuosity on each and every song. She simply has a beautiful voice, at times gentle and soothing, at other times, bursting with good-natured energy.Another distinctive feature of FF music is the often unexpected and delightful presence of Alberto Cottica's piano and acoustic guitar, which are often subtly interlaced throughout the electronica. Lady Jessica's pipes and whistles and Alberto's accordion are also defining sounds.

I mentioned before that Onda is bursting with good-natured energy. Let me add that this characteristic is indeed one of the things that makes this album so much fun: it is genuinely upbeat. While it is in many ways "modern" music, there is nothing cynical about it. On the contrary, it is a celebration of human perseverance, comradery, and talent. These latter items define FF's philosophy. If you read around on their website, it becomes very clear that these are very smart, good, and talented people who want to preserve great music, along with an emotional connection with the past, but who also want to bring these traditions forward to effect positive change in the here and now. If this all seems too heady, don't worry: this album is extraordinarily danceable and sing-along-able. Anyone with half a soul won't be able to resist smiling and tapping a toe. (Side note: For anyone who has seen FF live, their studio albums are NOT a letdown. I saw them play in Bloomington IN back in '06, and immediately purchased all their albums, and have not been disappointed by a single track. For anyone who has not seen them live, do so if you can - they're amazing.)

One more thing: If you listen to some Fiamma Fumana and like it, do an Amazon search for "Contatto." "Contatto" is Lisa Kant's remarkable solo album; but since it features her Fiamma Fumana cohorts providing instrumentation, hearing it is almost like discovering a lost FF album. See my review.

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Product Description:
Fiamma Fumana Mixes Electronic and Contemporary Grooves with Traditional and Pop Music.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Italian Love Songs Review

Fell in love with this beautiful romantic music. my friend translated some of the songs for me. i was in awe of the beauty of this wonderful collection. Thank you!

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Italian Treasury: Liguria-Polyphony of Ceriana [Original recording remastered] Review

Even in 1954, when Alan Lomax made his enthnographic field recordings of Italian folk music from Liguria to Sicily, that music was on the brink of being swept away, extinguished by the same technology of electronic mass culture that made the recordings possible. Lomax himself realized that he had arrive not "a moment too soon."

This recording features the singing of the "Compagnia Sacco", a group of villagers from Ceriana (near the French border) and its agricultural environs who identified themselves by their characteristic lunch sack, carried over their shoulders when they worked in the fields (shown in the cover picture). Originally they had sung together in their communal work times in the fields. Although the members of the Compagnia self-consciously proclaim the millennial antiquity of their music, the Compagnia was formally organized in 1926, and some of the original members were still singing. The voices you will hear are plainly the voices of older people; the prime virtue of their singing, generously stated, is "rude vigor." The model for their Company is indeed ancient; the Compagnia Sacco is fundamentally a "confraternity", a fraternal order of the type that played a huge role in the society of Renaissance Europe, not only in Italy but also in the North. A confraternity was a voluntary association of men (and sometimes of women) dedicated to the maintenance of a cult of worship of a specific saint or saintly image in a specific chapel. Confraternities in urban communities typically cut across lines of family, guild, and even social class. Supervision of festivities associated with the cult was part of their 'mandate.' If you've ever visited an urban cathedral in Italy, you've seen that the high altar and the screened choir belongs to the tourists these days, while the side chapels are often closed to the public. In the Renaissance, the main altar belonged to the clergy, while the side chapels were the focus of popular devotion and community worship, including music. The confraternities were the providers of music for the people, and at least partly by the people.

The fourth track, Lauda da Madona da Vila, is a 1954 relic of confraternal music of the Renaissance. The structure is a kind of improvisatory polyphony, with a vocal drone to establish the mode. Yes, this music is vestigially modal! A traditional melody is the basis for improvised ornamentation, though obviously the ornamentation is also tradition-bound, not utterly new and free with each improvisation. Such "lauda" melodies form the 14th & 15th centuries have been preserved in the songbooks of two Tuscan confraternities, along with financial records that show several interesting facts. One, the melodies were often commissioned compositions from literate clerical musicians; in other words, this 'pop' music was written by elites. Two, professional singers and instrumentalists were often hired; the members of the confraternity no doubt participated in the singing but did not dominate it.

I mention all this because my chief interest in ethnographic recordings like Lomax's is not in the quality of the performance but in the insight to be gained about the evolution of music - in all its aspects - over the centuries of European history. A little knowledge of that history, in this case, illuminates the fact that folk music is not always as ancient, unchanging, and preliminary to 'composed music' as the ethnographers propose. In the case of Liguria, the flow of musical DNA seems to have been from the center to the isolated outskirts, from the elite to the folk.

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Italian Treasury: The Trallaleri of Genoa Review

Alan Lomax Collection released by Rounder Records is a fantastic exploration of world and folk music based on the mid-20th-century recordings made by brilliant ethno-musicologist Alan Lomax. The collection includes music from around the world, including US, Caribbean, Spain, and Italy. The authenticity and beauty of these recordings is stunning, sound quality is excellent, and notes that accompany each CD (based on original notes by Alan Lomax) are extremely comprehensive and are exceptionally well researched.

The Trallaleri of Genoa is one of the jewels of the Italian Treasury series. This recording explores the improvised five-voiced male polyphony that originated in the Italian region of Liguria (Genoa is the largest city of the region.) The five voices that define Trallalero are falsetto, tenor, chitarra (guitar), baritone, and bass. The history Trallalero goes back for many centuries, as Alan Lomax points out when he notes that "this Ligurian style is probably one phase of music that is literally as old as human time," however we can only speculate about the origins of this style of singing. I don't want to bore you with the theory of Trallalero, however keep in mind that the notes that accompany this recording discuss the history and theory of Trallalero in great detail.

This CD is one of those recordings that blew me away as soon as I heard the very first five seconds of the very first song, and a strong desire (but lack of ability) to join in the chorus didn't leave me until the music stopped. The level of understanding and agreement these rustic men achieve in order to create these perfectly improvised melodies of rare beauty and complexity should be an object of endless envy for the solitary and self-sufficient urban dwellers we have become. The deep soulfulness of these songs is rooted in the earth itself, the melodies are intricate yet very straightforward, and cheap Italian wine is soaking through every note...
Trallaleri is the music that makes me want to quit the half-hearted complexities of the civilization and embrace the hearty simplicity of the country. Trallalero is best enjoyed with a group of friends, a jug of wine, a chunk of fresh Mozzarella, and a loaf of fresh Italian bread...

http://musicmaxim.blogspot.com/

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Italian Love Songs Review

Fell in love with this beautiful romantic music. my friend translated some of the songs for me. i was in awe of the beauty of this wonderful collection. Thank you!

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Italian Treasury: Piemonte and Valle d'Aosta Review

I'm don't think I'm a sopisticated reviewer of music, and I do not have Italian heritage; I simply liked this CD, and generally like unpolished regional music. If you want something slick, this probably isn't for you. The voices are not trained, and sometimes the singing is off-key; some of the music is peppy but much of it is lilting, soothing, and fairly melodic.



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Product Description:
Piemonte and Valle D'aosta Songs of love and war, marriage and jail, emigration and alms seeking, ballads and sung debates, dances performed by accordions, tambourine, and brass band: this CD includes a generous selection of historic and sometimes astonishing original field recordings from Piedmont and Valle d'Aosta in northeastern Italy, made almost 50 years ago. Italian Treasury In 1954, Alan Lomax and Diego Carpitella set out on a yearlong voyage of discovery that resulted in an exhaustive documentation of Italian folk music. "It was a mythic time. None of us suspected that that world - made of music, songs, poverty, joy, desperation, custom, violence, injustice, love, dialect, and poetry, formed over the course of millennia - would be swept away in a couple of years . . . by the voodoo of 'progress.'" -Vittorio De Seta. The Alan Lomax Collection The Alan Lomax Collection gathers together the American, European, and Caribbean field recordings, world music compilations, and ballad operas of writer, folklorist, and ethnomusicologist Alan Lomax. Recorded by Alan Lomax and Diego Carpitella.

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Bella Ragazza: Original Recordings 1934-1949 Review

Those who know and appreciate good vocal music will appreciate this disk - or for that matter ANYTHING from this artist. These include music lovers like myself who ordinarily listen to classical and operatic nusic only. Suffice it to say that before there was Lanza, before there was Bocelli, there was Carlo Buti who, perhaps with fellow Corsican Tino Rossi the Frenchman, started today's phenomenon of serious-tenors-singing-popular music. Yes, I am aware that Caruso and Gigli and many others also sang Neopolitan Songs; but like Buti there is none!
Run - not walk - to the nearest music store and buy this CD or any others you can find of this artist. Then perhaps you'll hear the imitatators from Crosby to Iglesias!

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Zucchero & Co. [Extra tracks][Import] Review

It's incredible how Zucchero can take his old songs, gather the best artists in the world and make a miracle happen.
This album doesn't have one bad song, and it's all in different languages! Surely brings every culture together...
definitely a great effort! must listen to this one!

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The Italian Treasury: Sicily Review

This music was interesting, to be able to hear the actual songs of the people as they worked in the fields, etc.A little difficult for me to understand due to the sicilian dialect, but still enjoyed it.I am keeping it as a reference for my children to have a piece of their heritage that is this slowing disappearing.Thank you for having recorded it before this happened.

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Italian Mandoline: Funiculi Funicula Review

Nice guitar/mandolin music. Personally I the 'mouth harp' was distracting. CD time 23 minutes.

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Traversata: Italian Music in America [Live][Original recording remastered] Review

While I can't claim to be any sort of an expert on Italian music, I must say that this is a fantastic cd. Being a fan of old movies, there are quite a few times while listening to this cd that all I can picture in my head is Sophia Loren circa 1958 strolling along a beach. Yeah it's THAT good.

Aside from Puccini, Cipolla, Eddie Lang, and the Godfather music, I wasn't really familiar with any of this music or its composers but now I wonder why this music has seemingly been forgotten. It's really gorgeous music and I am extremely grateful to David Grisman for "introducing" me not only to these Italian styles, but also to the two specific Italian musicians on this cd, Carlo Aonzo (mandolin) and Beppe Gambetta (14-string harp-guitar). The harp-guitar is usually in a supporting role here so it's never the lead instrument but it has wondeful, rich tone. I was suprised at times that it is a wooden guitar because it has a low-end more reminiscent of a National.

Carlo is the leader here, from playing to arranging. He is "the mandolin find" of the year for me this year, a truly great player. I initially had my doubts as to whether these guys would sound good next to Grisman but it turns out that they steal the show. Carlo also plays one of the single best moments of the cd when he takes a turn on mandocello for track #4 (Manzanillo).

Acoustic Disc has released many great cd's over the last decade and this is one of the best. The only other "ethnic" cd Grisman has released that can compare to this one is the masterpiece, Songs Of Our Fathers, but this one has better, richer sound than does that one.

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The Best of Zucchero Sugar Fornaciari's Greatest Hits Review

This particular "Greatest Hits" has mostly English lyrics, and a different song selection from the Polydor Italian version. I have both versions.This one is a lovely compilation of some of his best songs sung in English.I have been listening to Zucchero for a couple of years now and still have not tired of his sound.If you have never heard him, this is a perfect CD to start out with, since it showcases his songs being sung in English and therefore does not put a language barrier (in my case) between the music and the words. But, I also love all of his Italian versions and buy both when ever available. As a 'starter' CD this one is perfect.

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Along Gypsy Trails Review

This is NOT highlights from a radio broadcast, it IS the radio broadcast - in its entirety - with commentary/introduction from the host.After the radio broadcast portion, the quality on some of the tracks is poor and crackly, and one is not even professionally recorded.It is noted on the program that it is not a professional recording, but the synopsis here by Amazon does NOT reflect any of this.This is NOT what I was expecting in format OR quality.

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Product Description:
Composer/conductor Leon Zuckert was well known across the U.S. and Canada in the 1930s and 1940s through his long-running weekly radio broadcasts. This set offers highlights from his show, and performances of his compositions by various famous artists.

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Italian Treasury: Calabria Review

This isn't the typical "world music" collection. It is a selction of recordings by ethnomusicologist (did you know there WAS such a job?) Alan Lomax from 1954-55, documenting the music of small Italian villages, musical forms that have vanished forever.
The performances lack polish and finesse, naturally. Much of the cd is more like an auditory documentary than anything else. For example, the opening track "Swordfishermen's Calls," are exactly that - two male voices, shouting melodically over a long distance. This isn't the happy accordian music you hear at the Olive Garden, to say the least.The variety of the music is striking, containg a capella, tarantela, lullabies, accordians, bagpipes and melodies of surprising complexity.The vocals are a bit rough, sometimes - the Italians like to sing loud, apparently, and some of the singers go flat when they do.
The liner notes are extensive and contain English translations. Highly recommended, if you're looking for something truly authentic, a historical document rather than professional renditions of old folk songs.

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Mandolins from Italy: 24 Most Popular Melodies Review

This is a very good CD of typical Italian mandolin music, perfect dinner music for an Italian dinner. With over seventy minutes of music, it shouldn't run out while you're still enjoying your espresso.

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Italian Treasury: Folk Music & Song of Italy Review

OK. If you are into it, this is realy authentic folk playing and singing. Recorded in 1954 (excelently restored!), gives an overview of many Italian regions, not excluding minorities (Albanians of Calabria and Slavs of Venezia-Giulia), with the traditional music performed by local artists.
Most impressive moment: A capella Calabrian song recorded on a fishing ship, while the crew (20 half-naked, (so the notes say!),fishermen) is raising an undersea net. It is a bawdy song, but strangely beautiful. You can hear squeaking and squeeling of the capstain throughout the song.
Full notes, all texts and translations, and history. Bravo!
No cheap commercial stuff, my friends, but real life material...

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