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DRACULA OPERA ROCK

Premiata Forneria Marconi (PFM)

Rock Progressivo Italiano


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Premiata Forneria Marconi (PFM) Dracula Opera Rock album cover
3.53 | 186 ratings | 13 reviews | 16% 5 stars

Excellent addition to any
prog rock music collection

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Studio Album, released in 2005

Songs / Tracks Listing

1. Ouverture (5:08)
2. Il Confine dell'Amore (1:13)
3. Non è un Incubo è Realtà (5:38)
4. Il Mio Nome è Dracula (7:16)
5. Il Castello dei Perchè (4:03)
6. Non Guardarmi (4:11)
7. Ho Mangiato gli Uccelli (3:57)
8. Terra Madre (6:16)
9. Male d'Amore (3:59)
10. La Morte Non Muore (2:53)
11. Un Destino di Rondine (11:07)

Total Time: 56:08

Track list on double-disc 2006 SE:
CD 1 - Atto I
1. Ouverture (5:14)
2. L'ultima Notte D'amore (2:02)
3. La Visione Del Pazzo (1:14)
4. Non È Un Incubo È Realtà (4:32)
5. La Promessa (4:01)
6. La Danza Degli Orologi (2:45)
7. La Canzone Dell'innocenza (2:49)
8. Il Mio Nome È Dracula (7:23)
9. Il Castello Dei Perchè (3:23)
10. Vieni Jonathan Vieni (3:33)
11. Terra Madre (4:01)
12. Il Demeter (1:16)
13. Rose E Sangue (2:46)
14. Due Labbra Della Stessa Ferita (5:37)
15. Non Guardarmi (4:16)

CD 2 - Atto II
16. Il Tuo Sorriso La Tua Voce (3:38)
17. Male D'Amore (3:14)
18. L'incubo Di Lucy (2:44)
19. Il Vero Nemico (3:45)
20. Non Avrai Pace (1:53)
21. Due Donne In Me (3:49)
22. Il Punto Debole (9:10)
23. Una Nuova Carezza (5:13)
24. La Morte Non Muore (2:56)
25. Ho Mangiato Il Vampiro (3:59)
26. Un Destino Di Rondine (4:23)
27. Andarsene Per Amore (5:20)

Total time 104:56

Line-up / Musicians

- Franco Mussida / guitar, vocals
- Flavio Premoli / piano, organ, synthesizers, vocals, orchestrations
- Patrick Djivas / bass
- Franz Di Cioccio / drums, percussion, vocals

With:
- Emanuela Trane (Dolcenera) / vocals (11)
- Stefano Xotta / guitar
- Marco Formentini / guitar (7)
- Mauro Abbatiello / bass (7), electronic percussion (10), programming, engineer
- S.A.T. & B. Choir / chorus vocals
- Maria Grazia Fontana / choir director
- Vincenzo Incenzo / libretto
- Bulgarian Symphony Orchestra
- Natale Massara / orchestra director, orchestrations

Original stage cast (only on double-CD edition)
- Vittorio Matteucci / Dracula vocals
- Davide Benedetti / Jonathan vocals
- Maria Grazia Di Valentino / Lucy vocals
- Sabrina De Siena / Mina vocals
- Fabio Privitera / Renfield vocals
- Max Corfini / Seward vocals
- Giò Tortorelli / Van Helsing vocals

Releases information

Artwork: The Digital Workshop with Federico Romanazzo (Dracula logo)

CD Musiza - 82876723062 (2005, Italy) Abridged selection of the opera score, vocals by the band
2xCD Musiza - 9771591167007 (2006, Italy) Full recording w/ vocals by the original stage cast

Thanks to Willow for the addition
and to Quinino for the last updates
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Buy PREMIATA FORNERIA MARCONI (PFM) Dracula Opera Rock Music



PREMIATA FORNERIA MARCONI (PFM) Dracula Opera Rock ratings distribution


3.53
(186 ratings)
Essential: a masterpiece of progressive rock music(16%)
16%
Excellent addition to any prog rock music collection(34%)
34%
Good, but non-essential (33%)
33%
Collectors/fans only (12%)
12%
Poor. Only for completionists (4%)
4%

PREMIATA FORNERIA MARCONI (PFM) Dracula Opera Rock reviews


Showing all collaborators reviews and last reviews preview | Show all reviews/ratings

Collaborators/Experts Reviews

Review by lor68
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars Finally a modern accessible Opera Rock, which can be appreciated by a wider crowd of listeners (not for the prog fans only!!), of course with the same mood of a musical, even though I can not say it's equal to the 70's majestic opera rocks, such as "Jesus Christ Superstar for example or the good work by Who entitled "Tommy"...nevertheless it's suitable for a thrilling music event live on stage (as foreseen in the next concert programme of 2006), starring the whole old line up of PFM, plus a few guest stars, as well as a young talented female singer called "Dolcenera", singing in the final track "Un Destino di Rondine"... the good and the evil living together, the perfect representation of Dracula, this latter character already represented in the cinematographic masterpiece by F. Ford Coppola and here helped by the orchestral sections and the symphonic chorus as well, really delightful ; it's strange that it's the second concept album only, after the controversial (and quite disappointing too) "Ulisse" dated 1997, as They try to be involved in the development of a famous story and this time reaching their goal in a lot of circumstances: in fact the style of PFM is inspiring both in the accessible classic rock genre and in the symphonic breaks-through as well, close to a kind of classic music and with a certain creativity which is often remarkable. The lyrics by Vincenzo Incenzo are clever, thanks also to the melodramatic passages (think of the overture): of course it's not a prog masterpiece nor strictly a progressive concept album, but their music taste is always pleasant, being able to represent the various dramatic and romantic moods!! It should be worth a "3 stars" righter score in comparison to their best albums ...long live PFM, anyway!!
Review by ZowieZiggy
PROG REVIEWER
3 stars I was a bit suspect before listening to this "opera rock" as mentioned on the front cover. Rather pompous appellation IMO.

Some songs are on the plus side like the beautiful "Ouverture". Full of lyricism and beauty. Truly "PFM" like we were used to a long time ago.or "Non è Un Incubo è Realtà" which is a combination between one of the rockiest song from the band and some pure symphonic parts. A very good combination. When you listen to the intro of "Il Castello Dei Perchè" you can't avoid to recognize the "ELP" sounds. Of course with such an "opera" project.

My preferred song of the whole and fully in line with the "Dracula" concept is "Il Mio Nome è Dracula". It has a scary and intriguing mood. Melody is not forgotten either. This is a bombastic song with the band being really powerful.

After having heard the mellow ballad "Non Guardarmi", the band offers a more complex and tortured song. "Ho Mangiato Gli Uccelli" is close to "Crimson". Jazzy flavour and harder sound. I prefer the peaceful and melodic "Terra Madre". This ballad is by no means precious: there are rhythm changes, very good guitar work and emotional vocals. Another good song.

I have an opposite view of "Male d'Amore" which is a flat and uninspired rock song. The negro spiritual chorus is particularly difficult to bear. The worse is still to come. This honour is without any doubt hold by "La Morte Non Muore". A noisy song mixing rock, jazz, improvisation. Completely chaotic and unpleasant.

Of course, there is the long closing number which is holds some good moments (but not those Broadway-like passages). It stops after almost six minutes and then starts again for a pompous finale.

This work is only a part of the full "Dracula" opera. I can't really agree that this album is a masterpiece. A good album, maybe. At best.

Three stars.

Review by poslednijat_colobar
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars Getting better and better...

Again this remarkable band comes on the horizon with a great work. After the reformation in 1997 this is the third consecutive album by Premiata Forneria Marconi to be better than its predecessor. If we talk about the future Stati di immaginazione will be the fourth consecutive step forward. This reveals a strong return to form, lost after the middle of the 70s - thirty years earlier. It's admirable for sure. What about this album? Dracula Opera Rock is the first rock opera album by the band and it deserves this title. It's probably the first concept album by the band, too.

After a couple of controversial albums and thirty years of wandering, Premiata Forneria Marconi find its own new style and its way. Its strongly recommended for prog-period band lovers and not very much for pop-period band lovers (ha-ha). I would say it's different to 70s, but not in terms of weakness. The musicianship is very good and the songwriting, too! The album contains some opera themes (familiar to a rock opera), symphonic flavour and little jazz fusion. PFM is there they have to - on a solid ground! 4 stars!

Review by Evolver
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Crossover & JR/F/Canterbury Teams
3 stars First of all, I speak no Italian, so I have to judge this release purely on the music alone. That may be a good thing for the band, as the work "amore" seems to pop up all too frequently, so if I was albe to understand it, I might be put off by the excessive mushiness.

This album bears little resemblance to the seventies PFM, despite being the same core group of musicians. On the plus side, the music sounds big. The orchestrations, mostly done on synthesizer patches are exquisite, giving this rock opera a very overblown (in a nice way) theatrical sound.

Review by apps79
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
3 stars It was not until mid-90's when PFM seemed to return eventually towards the right direction.Flavio Premoli was back on track after many years and the quartet of Mussida-Djivas- Premoli-Di Cioccio recorded two albums, ''Ulisse'' from 1997 and ''Serendipity'' from 2000, which showed some hints of the great talent of these musicians, though being more on the accesible side of rock.In 2005 they came back with a more ambitious project entitled ''Dracula Opera Rock'', released on Sony BMG.

This concept album is a weird combination of rockin' parts along with PFM's old symphonic style blended with some more complex parts.The later are definitely what a listener seeks in PFM's music.And while the band sounds more fresh and modern than on their early years, anyone can still detect the similarities between the old and new sound.Most of the tracks fullfill all the Classical aspirations the title of the album suggests.Plenty of string sections, romantic piano textures and grandiose keyboard work with a cinematic edge along with series of dramatic vocal lines are definitely elements close to the prog likings.And the band presents them in a very professional way.Some of the compositions recall PFM's legendary past: Acoustic parts, symphonic keyboards work, organ leads and multi-vocal harmonies are more than welcome to be listened.And a fair amount of complex breaks appears every now and then.However a few compositions are rather dull, far of course from being bad, but also far from PFM's adaption.Very plastic synths, a couple of rockier' chessy parts and some flat vocal sections should not belong among the usual PFM menu and prevent the album to be really great.Nevertheless, there is enough material to satisfy the prog listener in here.

Do not expect a bombastic Rock opera from ''Dracula opera rock'', this is rather a modern and artistic Progressive Rock album with symphonic and Classical inspirations, but most of all it's a decent comeback of PFM into the prog field.Warmly recommended, despite being a step back compared to the essential efforts of the band from the 70's.

Latest members reviews

3 stars Between 1972 and 1974 PFM produced five legendary albums, inspired by early King Crimson, Per Un Amico (1972) is generally considered as their finest effort. King Crimson ex-member Pete Sinfield even contributed with English lyrics to two PFM albums, and was the support-act (with Mel Collins) du ... (read more)

Report this review (#1988415) | Posted by TenYearsAfter | Friday, August 17, 2018 | Review Permanlink

3 stars Are you italian? Do you speak italian or understand it? If the answers is no, then you can appreciate this album. Otherwise, you will find it very hard to tolerate it. I say so because I am italian, therefore I am unluckily able to understand the lyrics of this record. The concept is based on Dra ... (read more)

Report this review (#176192) | Posted by pepato | Sunday, July 6, 2008 | Review Permanlink

4 stars After almost 15 or 20 years of disillusion, PFM hypnotized me again with that kind of opera rock. I have to recognize that when the album were released I was really scary because I thought that it could be another step down into PFM discography but (thanks God!) I was wrong... Dracula is a ve ... (read more)

Report this review (#135675) | Posted by progadicto | Saturday, September 1, 2007 | Review Permanlink

5 stars When Dracula Opera Rock came out in Italy we all thought "this is the PFM commercial answer to Notredame De Paris, the incredibly successfull musical that Riccardo Cocciante created some years ago". And well, this is partly correct. One of the compositional inspiration is surely the Notredame ... (read more)

Report this review (#104923) | Posted by Rosenfield | Saturday, December 30, 2006 | Review Permanlink

3 stars I've tried hard to like this, I really have and I applaud PFM for doing something different. The problem is: 1- to me it sounds nothing like the PFM I like; 2- rock opera (or opera rock) is not a genre that does anything for me. So why did I buy it you ask? Because it's PFM! Which leads me b ... (read more)

Report this review (#100945) | Posted by zedkatz | Wednesday, November 29, 2006 | Review Permanlink

4 stars Lets Welcome a truly new masterpiece from this band which even after so many years is able to produce such a fantastic album. Actually this is just a small part of the big Rock Opera Dracula, which is going to be performed in theatre. In my opinion, PFM confirms to be the only italian band who ... (read more)

Report this review (#62131) | Posted by luc4fun | Thursday, December 29, 2005 | Review Permanlink

4 stars Well, what do we have here? The return of a King? This is wonderful music, production, and performance. It's nice to see the old guys like PFM and Ange really do something modern, yet remain the same high quality progressiveness of their early years. This is music that is both inspiring and t ... (read more)

Report this review (#62120) | Posted by tmay102436 | Thursday, December 29, 2005 | Review Permanlink

5 stars A truly convincing new album by PFM. A this point in time I felt they were just an "old- dinosaurs" band , capable of a good live rendition of their 70's masterpieces , but no more than that. As a matter of fact Ulisse and Serendipity are , in my opinion very deluding CD's if you are lookin ... (read more)

Report this review (#55015) | Posted by robferr | Monday, November 7, 2005 | Review Permanlink

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