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ENZO CAPUANO

Rock Progressivo Italiano • Italy


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Enzo Capuano biography
Enzo Capuano was born in Catanzaro, Calabria, in 1947. The family moved to Bologna where Enzo was raised. After studying Chemistry at University, he began a singing career in Milan and also worked as an actor. He collaborated on his keyboardist Mario Panseri's 1973 album titled "Adolescenza." After the release of his own quality progressive effort "Storia Mai Scritta" in 1975 on the Divergo label, Capuano did some soundtrack work for films and even cartoons before returning to the study of music at the Conservatory G. Verdi in Milan. He graduated with degrees in electronic music and vocal studies but continued work on his singing technique. In the later '80s he gave up his Chemistry career to pursue singing Opera and has been very successful. He has performed all over Europe in the great Opera houses and sings in the bass range.

Enzo told me "Talking about my production, I always thought that Storia mai scritta is still modern, still a suite of feelings and state of soul of these days." He also told me that he had little studio time and budget to complete his album and knowing this makes the results of "Storia" all the more impressive.
[Jim Russell / Finnforest]

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3.69 | 34 ratings
Storia Mai Scritta
1975

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ENZO CAPUANO Reviews


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 Storia Mai Scritta by CAPUANO, ENZO album cover Studio Album, 1975
3.69 | 34 ratings

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Storia Mai Scritta
Enzo Capuano Rock Progressivo Italiano

Review by coasterzombie

4 stars Initially transparent and one-dimensional, Storia Mai Scritta is really a folk suite disguised as prog and a definite grower. The seemingly simple and mostly instrumental arrangements contradict the sheer depth and amount of creativity artist Enzo Capuano pours into it; while only the first and last tracks feature lyrical content, the album as a whole tells a story musically and speaks volumes through its sparseness rather than its orchestration. Limited instrumentation is used to accomplish this task, with only Capuano's 12-string guitar, a drumset, and various synths at the helm. Piano player Mario Panseri, for whom Enzo Capuano had previously contributed guitar on 1972's Adolescenza, returns the favor here and does so in a tasteful fashion. Though Panseri was classically trained and a competent composer in his own right, his performance is restrained compared to similar synth-heavy albums (Luciano Basso's Voci, for example). Though you won't find any Mellotron or Eminent, the synths, organ and piano are used to create a dreamy atmosphere only accentuated by sparse percussion effects and arpeggiated guitar. And while Storia Mai Scritta has a fairly average length of 38 minutes, its running time flies by and the album is over before you know it. A truly great album always leaves you wanting more, and this one does just that. "Essential" and "Masterpiece" are not quite terms I would use to describe it, but Enzo Capuano's lone foray into the world of Rock Progressivo Italiano is an easy four- star recommendation.

The longish "In Forma di Vita" sets the scene for Capuano's tale of rose-colored nostalgia; gentle percussion accompanies acoustic guitar, synth bass, and piano. Enzo's strong, yet relaxing voice enters and impresses the listener with its calm command and presence. After a brief transition, the suite's first part bellows and wails in crescendo, though even this is restrained and never showy. A tempo change helps to ease into part two "La Nuova Stagione," which sounds a bit like Reale Accademia di Musica on Valium. "Volo Nella Notte" is slightly more energetic, adding a pulsing tambourine and frantic hi-hat to the mix. I especially love the way percussion like chimes and castanets are panned in the distance to create a swirly, psychedelic effect. Storia Mai Scritta is good headphone listening for sure; the entire album is extremely well recorded and produced, and sounds amazingly ahead of and out of its time.

"Risveglio" ends what would be Lato A, or side A, of the vinyl LP and does so powerfully. This provocative chord progression is really the first hint of melancholy and adds some welcome mass to an otherwise lightweight sequence. "Dal Tempo Vissuto" continues the minor-key momentum before the short piece ends abruptly and fades to "La Natura Dentro." For the first time Capuano and Panseri start to incorporate earlier thematic elements, giving the album a sense of coherence and musical "glue" that holds everything together. The long "Memoria" does a good job of filling out the second side without ever becoming stale or long-winded. My favorite moment on the entire disc occurs at the four-minute mark when an unexpected key change comes out of nowhere and takes the song in a totally different direction for about thirty seconds and disappears, never to be heard again. The extended instrumental workout eventually gives way to "Il Buio" and again Enzo Capuano is heard as if singing his own movie credits. Like Adolescenza, Storia Mai Scritta is very much a musical motion picture that ebbs and flows, and is forever memorable.

 Storia Mai Scritta by CAPUANO, ENZO album cover Studio Album, 1975
3.69 | 34 ratings

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Storia Mai Scritta
Enzo Capuano Rock Progressivo Italiano

Review by jeromach

4 stars Is it folk really?

I guess it has elements of folk (which seems to be such a small word for the big range of styles it supposes to represent), still I would not particularly call this work "folk", not even "progressive folk", just because it seems to be so much more than and different from a lot of other music. It tells a story in music though, that perhaps is "folky".

In a way it reminds me mostly of Harmonium's five seasons I guess, not so much because the music is similar, but since both albums are similarly "velvety". I really appreciate the music, the voice, but this velvety aspect adds to it being "whole", no need for additions, just ok the way it is, complete and good.

What else can I say? That it's quite emotional? Melancholic? Untraditional? Exciting? Well, I think it it is. And beautiful too, but that of course is a matter of personal taste. A five star master piece for me, but I'm not sure it really is essential, a 4+ therefore here on PA.

As a side note; only 15 ratings until now, I do think this album is underrated and deserves more exposure.

 Storia Mai Scritta by CAPUANO, ENZO album cover Studio Album, 1975
3.69 | 34 ratings

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Storia Mai Scritta
Enzo Capuano Rock Progressivo Italiano

Review by Mellotron Storm
Prog Reviewer

3 stars Enzo Capuano from Italy put out one album back in 1975. This is a laid back affair with lots of acoustic guitar. I must admit this has been a hard one for me to get into. I suppose my lack of love for Prog-Folk is the reason, I just wish the keyboards took on a greater role.

"In Forma di Vita" builds then a calm arrive before a minute. Reserved vocals follow with what sounds like string-synths. A beat after 6 minutes with vocals takes over. Not a fan. More string- synths follow. I like the keyboards 7 minutes in. "La Nuova Stagione" opens with gentle guitar melodies, it does get fuller after 1 1/2 minutes. "Volo Nella Notte" opens with more laid back guitar. It picks up before a minute then we get a calm. It picks up again as contrasts continue. Not enjoying this.The organ though is another story after 2 1/2 minutes, it just doesn't stay long enough.

"Risveglio" opens with mellow guitar. It's fuller before a minute. A calm follows before it picks up again with strummed guitar. "Dal Tempo Vissuto" features intricate guitar with light drums and string-synth-like sounds. A calm ends it. "La Natura Dentro" is pastoral once again with not a lot going on until around 2 minutes. It does settles to a calm before picking up again. "Memoria" opens with strummed guitar followed by drums then keyboards before 2 minutes. It settles before 3 1/2 minutes as the tempo continues to shift. "Il Buio" has vocals and a light beat with guitar. It picks up after a minute. The sound of traffic ends it.

Barely 3 stars but fans of Folk will find lots to enjoy on this reflective recording.

 Storia Mai Scritta by CAPUANO, ENZO album cover Studio Album, 1975
3.69 | 34 ratings

BUY
Storia Mai Scritta
Enzo Capuano Rock Progressivo Italiano

Review by Finnforest
Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator

4 stars A very beautiful suite of mostly instrumental, acoustic guitar & synth prog

Enzo Capuano released this mostly instrumental gem on a small label in the mid 1970s. Born in Calabria in 1947, Capuano is a talented guitarist and vocalist who would go on to perform outside the progressive realm for years to come. After this album Enzo would do some acting and have a career in the Chemistry field before returning to singing in the late '80s. Often written off by proggers who got the impression this was a strictly singer-songwriter affair it will surprise many who hear it. It's an interesting progressive album in the form of a long, connected instrumental suite combining some of the Italian folk traditions with a bit different approach than many of the other classic period Italian prog bands. Rather than the manic, wild, anything-goes approach of the day Enzo presents a more measured surface sound that finds its own way of sounding special.

The album's story is quite enchanting, Enzo himself revealed it to me in our interview: "Storia mai scritta is a suite. The idea for it came very easily to me: one evening I saw two young people in a pizzeria, and watched them while they were holding hands... It was clear that pizzeria was their habitual haunt, the home they were dreaming of, their nest of intimacy. She was already the mother of his children... He already felt responsible for the family they were dreaming of starting together... When I went back to the pizzeria, a few days later, I found it closed.... A notice on the door warned it had closed down for good, and that in the same premises a branch of a well-known bank would open. Through the shutters I could see the place where the two lovers had met, and then I started to think with their own minds, to imagine all they would have heard, said, decided... Perhaps that closure was the beginning of a new course for them... For me, it was the start of a new, lengthy song whose title was originally to be "La pizzeria". However, as I was developing that theme, the music became more and more narrative in nature, and the words slowly left their place to the melodies and blocks of rhythms and harmonies which make up the structure of Storia mai scritta... a story never written down in words, but rather through the atmospheres that only music can create."

"Storia Mai Scritta" takes a fairly unique approach with a blend of pastoral symphonic and prog-folk, sometimes reminding me of "Numbers" era Cat Stevens (sans vocals) but stretched out with much more space than Stevens pop approach. Other reviewers have made comparisons to Celeste and Reale Accademia di Musica and I can see why. Vocals occur only on the first and last tracks leaving the vast middle portion of the album instrumental. The other thing that makes the sound unique is the lack of electric guitars and bombast. It shoots for a more introspective approach with many mellow segments while still saving room for some punchy, louder, almost rocking parts. The original sound is obtained by creating a fabric of acoustic guitars (sometimes dual) mixed with synths/mellotron. Occasionally piano and Hammond are also used. The drumming is intermittent and fairly pedestrian but the sound is crisp and brings much energy while other kinds of percussion and sound effects come and go. In some longer and spacier sections it evolves from introspective and peaceful into a dynamic swirl of very good quality acoustic playing and keyboards, along with an active keyboard produced bass sound. Initially the album may sound too uneventful for some but repeated listenings will reveal the intricate arrangements and good melodies present throughout. Capuano sings and handles guitars and keys, backed by the late Mario Panseri also on keys and drummer Giovanni D'Aquila. This would sadly be another one-shot as far as Enzo's prog output but it is one worth owning for any fan of quality, dreamy progressive. It's a memorable album that is sadly overlooked. Get a copy of the Mellow Records CD MMP-286 while you still can. Yet another special thanks to Mauro Moroni for having the wisdom to make sure such an album saw the light of day. To read my full interview with Enzo go here: http://www.progarchives.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=56116&FID=47

Thanks to Finnforest for the artist addition.

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