1955-1967
USA

homes in Wallingford, Connecticut:
28 King Street (1955-1959), 41 Apple Tree Lane (1959-1967)

August 8, 1955 (4:22 AM)
birth in Meriden, Connecticut (Meriden Memorial Hospital)
see birth chart

1955-1967
youth in Wallingford

major formative influences:
father: swing jazz piano, sax, guitar & jazz records
mother: classical clarinet & classical records
elder sister: classical clavichord & folk/soul records
elder brother: finger-picking guitar & blues/rock records
maternal grandmother: Wurlitzer organ
everybody (including two younger brothers): singing
my big purple radio always set to Hartford's WPOP
neighborhood drummer David Aiken
pop concerts at the Oakdale Theater
Leonard Bernstein's "Young Person's Concerts" (Yale U.)
first 45 bought: "Working in a coal-mine" - Lee Dorsey
(or was it Soupy Sales' "The mouse"?)
first 33 bought: "The Chipmunks sing the Beatles"
main instrument: beat-up upright player piano

1960-1967
private piano teacher in Wallingford:
Mrs. Ryan (411 North Main Street)
trombone lessons at school (Cook Hill)

1967- PRESENT
ITALY

main residences in Italy:
ROME: Piazza di Campitelli (1967-1969), Via Titta Scarpetta (1969-1973), Vicolo delle Grotte (1973), Via Aurelia Antica (1974), Via della Storta (1976-1978)
POSITANO (Salerno): Via dei Coralli (1974-1976)
MILAN: Via Giovanni Ricordi (1978-1979), Via XXII Marzo (1979-1984), Via San Rocco (1984-2001)
BUCCINASCO (Milan): Via Cadorna (2001-)
SARDARA (Cagliari, Sardinia): Via Veneto (2001-)

upper schooling:
St. George's English School, Rome (1967-1971)
Principia Upper School, St. Louis, MO (1971-1972)
The Forum School, Rome (1972-1973)

July 1,1967
arrival in Rome, Italy with family from Wallingford
main instruments: Steinway grand piano & Gem electronic organ

1967-1973
main teachers in Rome:
Herr Dübendorfer-Hörler (piano)
Mr. William Hellerman (contemporary theory)

live activity:
various musicals, school bands, solo piano, including:
w/Black Sun in Rome (piano/vocals)
w/Scott McClain in Missouri (contemporary piano duet)

first experiences in the recording studio with Charlie Band & Chris West

1973
rehearsals and jams w/Roman blues, rock & jazz musicians
live experimental music w/Alvin Curran (synth/sax/guitar)
first "pro commercial" gig on Nato base in Agnano, Naples (MD/piano)
main instruments: piano, electronic organ, Fender Rhodes electric piano, EMS "Synthi AKS", Martin acoustic and Gibson electric (Melody Maker) guitars

1974-1975
L.P. "Alan Sorrenti" - Alan Sorrenti (piano/rhodes/kb/gt/arr.)
5 tracks, rec. November 1974
L.P. "Rosso Napoletano" - Toni Esposito (rhodes/arr./comp.)
1 track, rec. shortly thereafter
L.P. "Napoli Centrale" - Napoli Centrale (rhodes/arr./comp.)
all tracks, rec. March 1975

move to Positano

collaboration with Shawn Phillips (album demos, live)

own band w/Tony Walmsley, Carlo Pennisi & Agostino Marangolo (funky jazz-rock)

1976-1978
back to Rome

intense studio session activity (e.g. Patty Pravo, Loy & Altomare, Giovanni Tommaso...)

gigs with "Rovescio della Medaglia" (funky jazz-rock)

19th & 20th November in Rome: "Jambourée", a big band consisting of a score of prestigious Italian and American jazz and rock instrumentalists playing my compositions. Recorded on multitrack but never released (all the record companies wanted it so nobody would sign a release!)

main instruments: above plus Arp Odyssey

1978-1998
move to Milan

studio & live, jingles, film & tv music, Fairlight CMI demonstrator

just a few random examples of recordings from this period:

"Roccando rollando" - Eugenio Finardi (piano/guitar)
"Astrolympix" - Roberto Colombo/Mark Harris (vocals)
single: "Canta apress'a noi/E invece no" - Edoardo Bennato (piano/arr.)
single: "Titti" - Fabrizio De André (piano)
"Vado, prendo l'America e poi torno" - Stefano Rosso (piano/bass/arr.)
"Nuove Registrazioni" - Enzo Jannacci (piano)
"Tre Rose" - Massimo Bubola (piano/kb/arr.)
"Fabrizio De André" ("Indiani") - Fabrizio De André (piano/kb/gt/vocals: "Ave Maria"/arr.)
"Gaber" - Giorgio Gaber (piano/kb/arr.)
"Harmonica Man" - Andy J. Forrest (piano/kb/arr./vocals/comp.)
"Bravo" & "Bravo 2" - Lara Saint Paul (piano/kb/arr.)
"Secret Streets" - Eugenio Finardi (piano/lyrics)
"Minuti" & "Prenditi tempo" - Riccardo Zappa (piano/kb/arr.)
"I miei compagni di viaggio" - Mia Martini (piano/kb/arr.)
"Sogno di una notte d'estate" & "Passa la bellezza" - Mauro Pagani (piano/kb/vocal: "Good Morning")
"Chieffo&Piano", "Voglio che tutti conoscano il mio capitano" & "Di più" - Claudio Chieffo (piano/kb/arr.)
"La qualità dell'acqua" - Gianni Tirelli (piano/kb/arr.)
"That's it" - Nightflight (piano/kb/arr.)
"Un mondo bellissimo" - Bertas (kb/arr.)
"Messa di vespiri" - Articolo 31 (comp.: "Maria Maria")

plus recording &/or arrangements for:
Eros Ramazzotti, Pino Daniele, Alice, Teresa de Sio, Renato Zero, Enzo Gragnaniello, Roberto Vecchioni, Graziano Romano, Skiantos and scores of others, as well as live appearances with Vasco Rossi, Fiorella Mannoia, Adriano Celentano, Ornella Vanoni, Loredana Bertè, Tiziana Ghiglioni and a cast of thousands...

extensive teaching experience in various individual and group contexts, founding faculty member of Italy's largest modern music school (Centro Professione Musica)

instruments: too numerous to mention...
piano/endless kbs & modules/guitars/sax/computers (will say I'm a long-time DP/Mac user)...!

1998
limited companies Saint Rock s.r.l. (with Itria Melis) & Compingo s.r.l. (with Carlo Focarelli) formed

Live: MD/arrangements for Fabrizio De André (material from the tours will produce - over the next 6 years - 2 CDs, a full-length video and a DVD)

1999
four low/mid-budget instrumental albums produced for Compingo
CCD0001 "Haze on the water" - Luca Colombo
CCD0002 "Sabir" - Piero Cusato
CCD0003 "Tangueria" - Pierluigi Ferrari & Carlo Montoli
CCD0004 "Fab Four-string" - Stefano Cerri

www.compingo.com set up with e-commerce

Live: MD/arrangements for Laura Pausini (world tour)
MD for all-star commemorative concert in honor of Fabrizio De André in Genoa (the recording will be released as a double-CD in 2004)

2000
two high-budget vocal albums produced for Saint Rock
SRCD0001 "El meu viatge" - Franca Masu (first printing June)
SRCD0002 "In my bed" - Erika Cecchini (first printing December)

Live: MD/arrangements for Franca Masu (...free at last... ;-)

latest instrument bought: Roland XV-5080 loaded with sound cards and 128MG of memory

2001
www.saintrock.com revamped with e-commerce

Live: MD/arrangements for Franca and Erika (...yeah!!!)

promotion of Saint Rock artists

session work and jingles, including hilarious "Chinese" cues for Lemonsoda and Radio 105 network (one of Italy's biggest radio networks, with stations in New York and Miami as well!)

concerts in Istanbul, Turkey with old pals Ayhan Sicimoglu (congas, djembe, bongos) and Karl Potter (djembe, congas, voice) plus various guests

2002
concerts with Franca in Italy and Spain, and prestigious award from SGAE (the Spanish collecting society) for best debut album

Erika drops out of the music scene to dedicate herself to writing and sculpting

concerts with Leroy Gomez (he of the '70s disco remake of "Please Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" fame), session work, jingles, TV work, extensive translating for corporate websites (Ferrero, Barilla, Moby Lines...) and Milan City Hall.

latest "instrument": Titanium PowerBook

2003
back to Turkey for more gigging with Ayhan and friends

sessions, jingles, lyrics, webdesign, seminars (one on musical analysis of Rolling Stones songs - commissioned, I never would have thought I'd have so much fun researching and preparing it - and another on afroamerican rhythms), more translating

arrangement and all instruments for a De André tribute, "Luna Jaja", on Sardinian singer-songwriter Franco Madau's "Cara 'e luna" CD (arrangement and programming 2001, actual recording 2003)

summer touring with pop diva Antonella Ruggiero, including 2 concerts and a free 2-week holiday in Costa Rica!!!... now THAT'S what I call real work ;-)

meanwhile, I decide not to renew my option with Franca, freeing her to pursue her own career choices... best of luck, "cici"!

gigging in duet with phenomenal drummer/percussionist Ivan Ciccarelli, repertoire mainly Monk with some Shorter, Hancock, Strayhorn and originals...

two De André songs arranged for voice, string quartet, piano and classical guitar - commissioned for a tribute concert in Tempio Pausania... was such a huge success that they want me to MD next summer's whole event!

2004
steady shows - most of which recorded to supply material for an upcoming live CD - with Antonella, up and down "the Boot" plus New York (Brooklyn Museum), Lisbon and Dublin

jingles, arranging, session work, seminars and more gigs with Ivan and others (including old pals and stagemates Eugenio Finardi and Walter Calloni)

the live DVD I MD'd and arranged for Fabrizio De André hit number 1 in the Italian charts in February and is still right there after 4 months!

check out some great playing from my old bandmate master drummer Agostino Marangolo and a small group of jazzrock-loving friends (of which I'm one .-) on bassist Danilo Visco's new CD, available NOW from the Saint Rock "NetShop"!

2005
well, I'm 50 this year! Born that same wonderful summer of '55 that gave us McDonald's and Disneyland.... ah, what a festive moment for world culture! ;-)

lots of live work, mostly with Antonella...

2006
this year kicks of with a major tour with superstar Renato Zero; his latest album is topping the charts, and the single, "Immi Ruah", features an American piano player (hinthint)...

the live album with Antonella has come out! SWEET!
"stralunato recital_live" is the title.
tons of gigs, including Russia and Hong Kong...

2007
another Zero tour, this time in Italy's biggest stadiums to record crowds of over 70,000 people!

bought a studio-load of new equipment, including the new MacBook Pro... gorgeous!!

More gigs with Antonella (including another one in Moscow), and, meanwhile, I'm working on a piece for choir (a Northern Italian "Alpine Choir") to be premiered in December. Very excited!

December 16th, Rovereto (Trento): played a glorious concert with the choir - "Coro S. Ilario" - plus an hour of solo piano. Whole thing taped for a DVD release next year!

2008
gigsgigsgigs... Italy, Bulgaria (Sofia)...