(Photo:
Acqua Fragile; Piero Canavera, Franz Dondi, Bernardo Lanzetti, Stefano
Pantaleoni, Claudio Tuma and Rossella Volta, 2023 / fifty years after the first
album by the same name in 1973, comes out with a brand new work, an album with
totally original songs, entitled “Moving Fragments”)
Q&A
with legendary Italian prog ensemble Acqua Fragile, vocal harmonies, odd tempo
signatures, romanticism, aggression, theatricality
by Michael Limnios Blues Network
"I
miss that noble combination of sounds and silences with references and
meanings. Today, most music makers donʼt even know what silence is… Music of
the past would provide a spectrum of positive vibes and hope for the future.
Todayʼs mainstream, with a few exceptions, sounds like an insult when not
‘causing disgust down to not caring for the future of humankind."
Legendary Italian prog ensemble Acqua Fragile, fifty years after the first album by the same name in 1973, comes out with a brand new work, an album with totally original songs, entitled “Moving Fragments” (2023). Confirming the salient characteristics of A F style – vocal harmonies, odd tempo signatures, romanticism, aggression, theatricality, and research – some new features and significant developments embellish this new album. The three original members of the band Piero Canavera (drums, percussion and vocals), Franz Dondi (bass), Bernardo Lanzetti (lead vocals, guitar and Glovox), are joined in by Stefano Pantaleoni (keyboards), Claudio Tuma (guitars) and the vocalist Rossella Volta, all previously together on stage in live adventures, over the past two years.
Nine
songs of which five in English, one instrumental and three in Italian.
Developing the mode experimented in Aqua Fragile’s previous work, “A New
Chant”, released In 2017, there are numerous guest musicians including one
British and one American. In three songs, Bernardo Lanzetti’s creative motor is
fueled by the contribution of keyboardist and composer Stefano Pantaleoni. The
production is entrusted to Dario Mazzoli, already a partner of Lanzetti in
various adventures in the recording studio, including his latest solo album
“Horizontal Rain” (2021).
Interview
by Michael Limnios
Special
Thanks: Billy James (Glass Onyon PR)
How has the Rock music and culture influenced your views of the world and the journeys youʼve taken?
Franz: In the early '60S, when the first echoes of rock music coming from over the ocean and across the channel they arrived in our province town, we were fascinated to the point that we were overwhelmed by it. this journey of music across the borders of the states was accompanied by a rich baggage of new culture into which we had dived without a lifeguard, grabbing with full hands that treasure full of hopes of freedom and protagonist. we started playing with electric instruments, they had existed for a little time, we read the things that were happening in London and the states. We read the books of the poets of the beat generation feeling revolutionary of a true revolution in progress, and, a truly unique case, for the first time non-violent. We were getting away from previous generations in great steps. the influence on me was strong and still persistent even though the eyes of "maturity" have smoothed many corners of dreams and initial objectives. My travels were oriented towards places where music and freedom went hand-in, but not only, where in main line, artistic expression premiered.
Bernardo: As a kid, I wanted to become a mad scientist. Much better for the entire world that I went into singing and Art Rock.
Piero: Music has always accompanied my life since my first steps. It is evident given my age that I have been influenced by rock music starting from Elvis, the Beatles and everything that followed up to the progressive 70s.
What were the reasons that made Europe (includes Italy) in the 1970s to be the center of Progressive Rock researches and experiments?
Bernardo:
With bands like King Crimson, Family, Genesis, Yes, Jethro Tull, Gentle Giant,
Van der Graaf Generator and many more, you should know that Great Britain was
the centre of Prog Rock even though, at the time, it did not go by this name.
Itʼs true though, that all these British bands would come down to tour Italy
and some of these acts were more successful here than in England. Acqua Fragile
did tour with Gentle Giant and opened for Uriah Heep, Audience, Colosseum, Soft
Machine, Curved Air and other bands featuring players later to became famous
for joining major Prog bands.
"Music has always accompanied my life since my first steps. It is evident given my age that I have been influenced by rock music starting from Elvis, the Beatles and everything that followed up to the progressive 70s." (Photo: Acqua Fragile; Piero Canavera, Franz Dondi, and Bernardo Lanzetti, c. 2017)
How do you describe Acqua Fragile music philosophy, sound and songbook?
Bernardo: Just think about genres like Flamenco or Opera, for example. Would you expect musicians to write and perform Flamenco in a language different from Andalusian-Spanish? Would composers and performers want a language different from Italian when getting into melodrama? Acqua Fragile believed their music should have been sung in English as influenced by that cultural area. Those Italian Bands of the ʼ70s you are thinking of did sing in Italian but the vocal sections were very limited while the instrumental parts would take a lot of space. One of PFM most famous track “È Festa (Celebration)” lasts more than 7 minutes but only has 22 (twenty-two) words! On top and on the side of this, you should remember that Area had an album and a track with a German title and Banco del Mutuo Soccorsoʼs most famous composition is called “R.I.P” from Latin language! Because we chose to sing in English, Acqua Fragile was practically banned from RAI, Italian National Radio and TV, so that the first two albums never did get any airplay while the band never appeared on TV. On the other end, Acqua Fragile was standing out with plenty of singing and quite often, with a three part harmony. No way we could get the sound we were after just singing in Italian.
What is the story behind bandʼs name “Acqua Fragile”?
Bernardo: I came up with that name for the Band wanting Italian words that are used in many other languages, English included. The same happened with “Mass Media Stars” (second album), “My Forte”, opening track of the third album “A New Chant” and “Malo Bravo” off the latest one “Moving Fragments”. I should mention, though, that in our third album “A New Chant” we included an Italian number mainly to show that we could do it. In our latest “Moving Fragments” we are presenting up to three tracks in Italian as the environment, the line up and the times have quite changed…
Are there any specific memories or highlights of Acqua Fragile timeline that you would like to tell us about?!
Franz:
There are several good and bad moments but all important in our short/long
group history. The first rehearsals in the basements, the successes of the
performances in the ballets, Bernardo's compositions and the consequent
collective constructions, the experiences of newborns in the recording room,
the opening tours of concerts with Anglo-Saxon stars. What can I say, success
seemed within hand, but the storm was there, around the corner, Bernardo took
an unexpected decision by the whole band, he walked away, and it was the late
night for us, until the reconnection took place in 2013 on the occasion del vox
40 (40 years of Bernardo's career). He called us, he explained the project, we
liked it, four sincere chats, a strong handshake and off we are off again.
"The
genre of music of Acqua Fragile is a little different from the groups mentioned
above, let's say that it approaches the patterns of rock music in a softer way,
just as can be understood from the name of the group, based on the chirality of
harmonized voices and inspired by classical solutions that find musical
developments and progression during the performance of the songs." (Photo:
Acqua Fragile, c.1973)What would you say characterizes Acqua Fragile in comparison to other local bands as Area, PFM, Goblin, etc?
Piero: The genre of music of Acqua Fragile is a little different from the groups mentioned above, let's say that it approaches the patterns of rock music in a softer way, just as can be understood from the name of the group, based on the chirality of harmonized voices and inspired by classical solutions that find musical developments and progression during the performance of the songs.
Why do you think that Italian Progressive Rock Scene continues to generate such a devoted following?
Franz: In Italy, the media machine, dedicated to the conditioning of the masses, works very well, as in all states of the world, but small pockets of "heroic" citizens love to reason with their own head, with great passion and a lot of love devoting themselves to music of thickness, of research, of boundaries from the “non-music” proposed by today's market. In the youth of our generation this engaged music made increase and now in the senior age it portentously reappears to give sense to existence.
What do you miss most nowadays from the music of the past? What are your hopes and fears for the future of?
Bernardo: I miss that noble combination of sounds and silences with references and meanings. Today, most music makers donʼt even know what silence is… Music of the past would provide a spectrum of positive vibes and hope for the future. Todayʼs mainstream, with a few exceptions, sounds like an insult when not ‘causing disgust down to not caring for the future of humankind.
Franz: The colors, the harmonies, the wonderful melodies. the emotions that music should eternally give people but the ruthless designs of a market deaf to human needs lead to other lands. hopes are few, we always remain in the order of sporadic niches that resist the storm of ugly and non-quality thinking about the future takes courage.
Piero:
Of course, today I miss bands with new material. In the 2000s I only
appreciated Porcupine trees. The music that remains with me is only that which
characterized my growth, namely that of the '60s, '70s and '80s. I think that
in the future there could be new musical genres of good validity, perhaps less
prolifically than in the 70s, but always evolving.
What is the impact of music on the socio-cultural implications? How do you want the music to affect people?
Bernardo: In the last twenty years or so, music is not made by musicians or artists but itʼs the result of actions carried out by twisted majors, media, gangs, subjects out there not only to make or launder money but mostly to occupy and preside an area where people can be truly influenced. In this present era, we have so many outstanding players but music on the main market has never been so poor. On my side, I pay attention to theories and studies that tell us how music can affect the cells of the human body. As far as singing I go along with anthropologists and smart enlightened doctors reporting how, in very ancient times, singing was first medicine for the primordial man.
Franz: The impact of music on society in my opinion is strong and very important in the sense that, if you accept it as a background and not as thought and thinking art, it can play the game of those who want the spread of non-thoughting, while the dangerous thinking brains listen carefully, weigh the intrinsic qualities and then house them in their own thought and their heart, experience a kind of symbiosis which inevitably lead to the growth of the person and consequentially of the society. people find it very difficult to commit, because they are conditioned, they prefer the song to the research and quality of certain committed music, so I don't know how to get these people's attention except by continuing to produce quality music.
What are some of the most important lessons you have learned from your experience in the music paths?
Bernardo: Dare and persevere. Do your own things and take care of your health as your time will come. Fight for your rights because no one else, out there, will do it for you.
Franz:
respect for music and musicians. I learned at my own expense, like many others,
the importance of keeping my feet on the ground without never abandoning the
dreams which are the blood of existence. I knew true friendship. I learned and
experienced great joy and great suffering living music has given me eternal
youth.
MaRaCash
Records - Moving Fragments
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