ALESSANDRO ALISCIONI

Alessandro Aliscioni is an Italian composer from Tolentino. He was born in 1951 and studied in Rome in the 1960s before embarking on a decades-long career which included teaching, then composing many musicals and soundtracks works. His inclusion here is a borderline case, based solely on the 1977 album "Il Rivoluzionario" which is of interest to RPI fans. The conceptual album covers Christian themes (with lyrics by Renato Biagioli) which was one of the side branches of the 70s Italian prog scene. It featured Italian pop and soft progressive rock with some of the common singer/songwriter and symphonic elements. I agree with our friend Mat who on his website compares the album to the soft symphonic album by Mario Panseri, called "Adolescenza", though perhaps not quite as impressive.

The album features a lighter prog rock sound centered around soft keyboards and piano, acoustic guitars, and laid-back vocals. There is a frequent and wonderful use of the violin as a prominent accompaniment, and while the playing is not as disciplined or technically impressive as say, QVL, it does lend a great folksy vibe. There are also some really nice children's choir vocals and female vocals adding richness to the sound. "Scribi e farisei" sees the rock component increased with a heavy bass line, hand percussions, louder drumming, and even some slightly more aggressive electric guitar work. A dramatic riff and the chanting youth choir bring more energy and sass to this track, one of the best. Other tracks sound more like soundtracks to plays which is what Aliscioni would be known for later. The orchestral sounds in the background are interesting, I'm not entirely sure if they are strings or synthesized strings of some kind, but they're not a typical 'tron sound.

Certainly not bad in any way, but this one is really for the more dedicated RPI fans looking for the deep collection. The music is OK but not particularly memorable and two stars is therefore appropriate I think.