If you tuned into Italian Disco Stories’ favorite show Stryx (which we discussed here, here, and here) you’d notice that, between high-femme, sensual disco acts and languid, slower numbers, there was a red-clad, violin-wielding creature known as “Il Folletto”, the Imp.You’d see him on a swing or serenaded by folk instruments known as launeddas, when he’d start singing songs that seemed to have originated a long time ago, which fit with the overall theme of the show.
That was Angelo Branduardi, Italy’s own menestrello, who invited people to another kind of dance. “Ballo in Fa Diesis Minore,” contained in the album La Pulce d’Acqua for instance, has death knock on a door, and only a dance can distract her and temporarily stop her, as she has to put down her glaive to join others.
Between the 1970s and 1980s, The 4/4 beat (or 2/4 for the Schlager-inspired tracks) was not the only dancing rhythm in Italy. While many producers and performers looked to the glitzy surfaces of discothèques and dancefloors, others channeled another type of dance, the one we associate with taverns, jousts, and fairytales set in a far away land.
Angelo Branduardi, a classically trained violinist and singer songwriter, became famous in Italy and continental Europe for including Renaissance and Early Baroque influences in his songs. Consider his 1976 song and album Alla Fiera dell’Est, also known as Highdown Fair. The title track is an adaptation of the Passover song Chad Gadya, the track “Il vecchio e la farfalla” is based on the travels of Marco Polo, “la serie dei numeri” references the breton son “Ar Rannoù,” and the melody of “Sotto il tiglio” (under the linden tree) is, indeed, a homage to the lied of the same name—Unter den Linden—by 12th-13th-century German poet Walther von der Vogelweide.
His 1979 album Cogli la prima mela (pluck the first apple) has its title track adapted from a medieval tune from Hungary, known as U naseho Barty. The melody of the song “Donna ti voglio cantare” elaborates the French tourdion Quand je bois du vin clairet, a fast, frantic dance for couples. The song “La Raccolta” has the lyrics adapted from Sappho’s poetry, while the melody comes from a Romanian folk ballad titled “M-am suit în dealul Clujului.” “La Strega” is inspired by the story of Eloise and Abelard, and, allegedly, it should have been titled “Eloisa”
In this vein, in 1977, Roberto Vecchioni released “Samarcanda,” which tells the story of a soldier who survived a war catching a glimpse of a woman in a crowd, who happens to personify death. He then asks for a horse to flee from what he perceives to be his doom, only to find death to the place he escaped to. Branduardi provided the instrumental track for both violin and recorder, and has frequently appeared with his violin during live performances of this track.
Around the same time, singer-songwriter Pierangelo Bertoli released “Pescatore,” a duet originally penned by Marco Negri. It tells the story, told by two contrasting points of view, of a fisherman, struck by a storm while seafaring and , while his wife is both fearing for her husband’s life and yearning for another man’s touch. The theme and the structure, where two alternating voices each embody a different character, has a markedly medieval/early-Renaissance flavor, even though the melody does not feel of that time.
Another notable group in this genre is Accademia, who was active at the intersection between Classical and proto-techno. If you listen to them now, you won’t help being reminded of a symphonic, video game soundtrack. Take their 1981 hit “Cavaliere del Vento,” it combines orchestral instrumentation, rock-like guitar solos with a vocal track that can only be described as anime-opening-theme adjacent.
The culmination of this wave of sword-and-sorcery-inflected tunes peaked in the 1990s. In 1991, Amedeo Minghi composed the soundtrack to the high-fantasy series Fantaghirò, a pan-European production telling the story of a warrior princess, set in a location-agnostic pagan kingdom. The opening theme, “Mio Nemico”, sung by Rossana Casale, is an ethereal composition that, despite its fairytale setting, could also serenade a contemporary space opera.
The same year, the Sardinian folk-rock group Tazenda and singer-songwriter Pierangelo Bertoli mesmerized the audiences at Sanremo by presenting “Spunta la luna dal monte,” the Italian adaptation of the Sardinian song “Disamparados.” The Italian part, sung by Bertoli, is a description of a somber, nocturnal landscape, while the Sardinian counterpart describes the disaffected ones, who are desperately foraging for food.
Medieval-inspired ballads are not the sole purview of nerdy songwriters, though. For the variety show C’era due volte (Twice Upon a Time), Ilona Staller alternated between the standard disco fare of “You Know The Way” and the medieval-synth lullaby “C’era Due Volte,” whose unexpected and modal harmonies make it more experimental than it might seem.
And in 1999, Anna Oxa sang her hit “Senza Pietà” from the point of view of a valiant female warrior, who declares herself unfazed by swamps, snow, and able to breach any fortress. Its imagery shares similarities both with Samarcanda (the travelling knight) and “Spunta la luna dal monte” (comparing oneself to a wellspring).
Did your country also dabble in old-time folk-inspired tunes between the 1970s and the 1990s? Let us know in the comments
I remember a concept album from Valerie Dore inspired by King Arthur, The Legend. I have a copy of the “Lancelot” 7”
The closest thing to that from Canada I can think of right now are Stan Rogers' late 1970s sea shanties. Or Canadian folk music from the same time period.