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Artist:

Mantovani

Born:
Nov 15, 1905 in Venice, Italy

Died:
Mar 30, 1980 in England

  • Birth Name: Annunzio Paolo Mantovani
  • Genre: Easy Listening
  • Active: '20s - '70s
  • Instruments: Violin, Strings

Biography

Conductor, composer, violinist, and pianist Mantovani was one of the most popular and prolific easy listening artists of all time. His trademark "cascading strings" (or "tumbling strings") effect gave him an instantly recognizable sound, and his heavy reliance on the string section in general helped map out the blueprint for much of the light orchestral music that followed in his wake. His repertoire did feature original compositions, but was built chiefly on lush adaptations of familiar melodies: TV and movie themes, show tunes, pop hits (chiefly of the MOR variety), classical material, and the like. Starting his career in the '20s, Mantovani was very much a product of the recording age: he focused almost entirely on recording, instead of live performance; he was one of the first artists to utilize the LP as a primary medium for his releases (as opposed to singles); he was one of the first popular artists to use stereo recording technology, and likely the first to sell over a million records in the stereo format. Fascinated by the studio recording process, he experimented restlessly with miking methods and other technical nuances over the course of an astoundingly large discography -- more than 50 albums from the early '50s until his death in 1980 (not counting his numerous 78 rpm records, dating back to the late '20s). Annunzio Paolo Mantovani was born November 15, 1905, in Venice, Italy. His father was an accomplished violinist who performed at the legendary Milan opera house La Scala under the direction of Arturo Toscanini. Mantovani himself began piano and music theory lessons at a young age. In 1912, the family moved to England, where Mantovani's father took over direction of the Covent Garden Orchestra. At age 14, Mantovani switched from piano to violin; although the latter became his instrument of choice, he would keep up his piano work for the sake of composing. Just two years later, he made his professional debut with a performance of Anton Bruch's "Violin Concerto No. 1." He joined a touring orchestra and quickly became a featured soloist; by age 20, he was leading the resident Hotel Metropole Orchestra, and made a few recordings with the group in 1928. He gave high-profile recitals in 1930 and 1931, performing Saint-Saëns' "Violin Concerto in B Minor" at the latter, and began to make a name for himself. Around the same time, he formed a new group, the Tipica Orchestra, and started a series of regular radio broadcasts from London's high-profile Monseigneur restaurant. Mantovani and the Tipica Orchestra made highly successful appearances all over England, and recorded for Sterno, Regal Zonophone, and Columbia from 1932-1936; two of those records, "Red Sails in the Sunset" and "Serenade to the Night," were hits in the U.S. in 1935 and 1936, respectively. Columbia changed the billing on his records to Mantovani & His Orchestra in 1937, and in 1940 he moved over to Decca. By World War II, he was one of the most popular orchestra leaders in England, and in the '40s he also branched out into theater, serving as musical director for a number of productions including several by Noel Coward. Once World War II ended, Mantovani threw his energy into recording, and gradually moved away from live performances altogether. He experimented with different styles over a series of popular 78s for Decca, and hit upon his signature sound when he connected with arranger Ronald Binge, who'd once played accordion in the Tipica Orchestra. Binge was likely the man who devised Mantovani's dramatic "cascading strings" effect, which the two first employed on the 1951 single "Charmaine," a song originally written 25 years earlier. "Charmaine" was a major hit, selling over a million copies and definitively cracking open the U.S. market for Mantovani's music. A steady stream of hit singles followed in the early '50s, including "Wyoming" (1951), "Greensleeves" (1952), the U.K. number one "Song From Moulin Rouge" (1953), "Swedish Rhapsody" (1953), "The Lonely Ballerina" (1954), "Toy Shop Ballet" (1956; it helped him win the U.K.'s Ivor Novello Award), and "Around the World" (1957). Additionally, Mantovani arranged, co-wrote, and backed David Whitfield on his U.K. chart-topper (and U.S. Top Ten) "Cara Mia" in 1954. Starting in 1953, he recorded what proved to be a deluge of LPs for Decca and its London subsidiary. The advent of rock & roll stunted his success on the singles charts, but his albums sold like hotcakes in America. From 1955 to 1972, well over 40 Mantovani albums reached the U.S. pop charts; 27 of those reached the Top 40, and 11 made the Top Ten. His biggest sellers included Christmas Carols (1953; it re-entered the charts several times), Strauss Waltzes (1953), Song Hits From Theatreland (1955), Film Encores (1957; his lone number one album), Gems Forever (1958), Mantovani Stereo Showcase (1960), Italia Mia (1961), and the smash Mantovani Plays Music From "Exodus" and Other Great Themes (1961), a number two hit that sold over a million copies and stayed on the charts for nearly a year. His version of the "Exodus" theme was just one of several successful recordings (others were by Ferrante & Teicher and jazzman Eddie Harris). As the '60s wore on, Mantovani's brand of pleasant, light orchestral music increasingly diverged from mainstream tastes in pop, and his chart placings slipped lower and lower (his last entry was 1972's Annunzio Paolo Mantovani). Still, he stayed true to his own aesthetic, only adopting those contemporary trends that he could translate on his own terms. His recording activities were curtailed after the Decca label was dissolved and absorbed into MCA in 1973, though he continued to compose for several years afterward. He passed away on March 30, 1980, in his country home in Tunbridge Wells, England. ~ Steve Huey, All Music Guide

Representative Songs:

"Charmaine," "Moon River," "Cara Mia"

Representative Albums:

Collection, Mantovani's Golden Hits, White Christmas

Similar Artists:

Nelson Riddle, Robert Farnon, Harpo Marx, Lawrence Welk, André Kostelanetz, Arthur Fiedler, Percy Faith, Ray Conniff, 101 Strings Orchestra

Performed Songs By:

Joseph Mohr, John Francis Wade, Robert Wells, Paul Francis Webster, Mitchell Parish, Oscar Hammerstein II, Sammy Fain, Franz Xaver Gruber, Jerome Kern, Richard Rodgers, Mel Tormé, Michel Legrand, Irving Berlin, Henry Mancini, Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky, Johann Strauss II, Stephen Sondheim, George Frideric Handel

Worked With:

Ray Few
 
 
Wikipedia: Mantovani


Annunzio Paolo Mantovani (November 15, 1905 – March 29, 1980) was a popular conductor and entertainer in the "light orchestra" style. Mantovani is probably more associated with the light orchestra genre than any other person.

Biography

He was born in Venice, Italy and his father was the concertmaster of the La Scala orchestra under Arturo Toscanini. His family moved to England in 1912, where he studied at Trinity College of Music in London. After graduation, he formed his own orchestra, which played in and around Birmingham. By the time World War II broke out, his orchestra was one of the most popular in England,[citation needed] both on the BBC and in live performances.

He was also musical director for a large number of musicals and other plays, including ones by Noel Coward. After the war, he concentrated on recording, and eventually gave up live performance altogether. He worked with arranger and composer Ronnie Binge, who developed the "cascading strings" sound (also known as the "Mantovani sound").[citation needed] His records were regulars in stores selling hi-fi stereo equipment, as they were produced and arranged for stereo reproduction. In 1952 Binge ceased to arrange for Mantovani, but his distinctive sound remained.

He recorded for Decca until the mid-1950s, at which time he switched to London Records. He recorded over 50 albums on that label, many of which were top-40 hits. These included Song from Moulin Rouge and Cara Mia, which reached No. 1 in Britain in 1953 and 1954, respectively. The latter was also Mantovani's first U.S. Top Ten hit.

In the United States, between 1955 to 1972, he released over 40 albums, with 27 reaching the Top 40 and 11 the Top Ten. His biggest success was with the album Film Encores, which made it to No. 1 in 1957. Similarly, Mantovani Plays Music From 'Exodus' and Other Great Themes made it to No. 2 in 1961 and sold over one million albums.

Mantovani made his last recordings in 1975.[citation needed]

Music Style and Influences

The cascading strings technique developed by Binge became Mantovani's hallmark in such hits arranged by Binge as Charmaine. Binge developed this technique to replicate, by arrangement alone, the echo, experienced in venues such as cathedrals, in an echo-free surrounding.

Author Joesph Lanza describes Mantovani's string arrangements as the most "rich and melifluous" of the emerging light music style during the early 1950s. He stated that Mantovani was a leader in the use of new studio technologies to "create sound tapestries with innumerable strings", and that "the sustained hum of Mantovani's reverberated violins produced a sonic vaporizor foreshadowing the synthesizer harmonics of space music."[1]

Since his death at his home in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, in 1980, his music has enjoyed a minor revival,[citation needed] with much of his catalogue reappearing on CD and an orchestra bearing his name performing concert tours. The saleability of the Mantovani name is underscored by new recordings being made as the Mantovani Orchestra. Unfortunately, a large number of CDs are also available of unauthorized recordings, billed as Mantovani or Mantovani Orchestra.[citation needed] There have also been CDs released under the Mantovani name of recordings made by others while Mantovani was still alive.[citation needed] Thus, consumers of this music are advised to familiarize themselves with the conductor's discography. Material with the London Records logo on it is apt to be genuine Mantovani, while other recordings are less likely to be actual Mantovani recordings.

Discography

Popular music

  • Song Hits from Theatreland, London 125, 1955
  • Music from the Films, London 112
  • Waltz Encores, London 119
  • Film Encores, London 124, 1957
  • Gems Forever, London 106, 1958
  • Continental Encores, London 147
  • Film Encores, Vol. 2, London 164, 1959
  • The Music of Victor Herbert and Sigmund Romberg, London 165, 1960
  • The Music of Irving Berlin and Rudolf Friml, London 166, 1956
  • The American Scene, London 182
  • Songs to Remember, London 193, 1960
  • Great Film Music (Music from "Exodus"), London 224, 1960
  • Theme from "Carnival," London 3250, 1961
  • Themes from Broadway, London 242
  • American Waltzes, London 248
  • Moon River, London 249, 1962
  • Selections from "Stop the World - I Want to Get Off" and "Oliver," London 270
  • Latin Rendezvous, London 295
  • Manhattan, London 328, 1963
  • Folk Songs Around the World, London 360
  • The Incomparable Mantovani, London 392
  • The Mantovani Sound, London 419, 1965
  • Mantovani Olé, London 422
  • Mantovani Magic, London 448, 1966
  • Mr. Music, London 474, 1966
  • Mantovani/Hollywood, London 516
  • The Mantovani Touch, London 526, 1968
  • Mantovani/Tango, London 532
  • Mantovani ... Memories, London 542
  • The Mantovani Scene, London 548, 1969
  • The World of Mantovani, London 565, 1969
  • Mantovani Today, London 572, 1970
  • From Monty with Love, London 585-586, 1971
  • An Evening with Mantovani, London 902, 1973
  • The Greatest Gift Is Love, London 913, 1975

Semi-classical music

  • Strauss Waltzes, London 118
  • Concert Encores, London 133
  • Operetta Memories, London 202
  • Italia Mia, London 232, 1961
  • Classical Encores, London 269
  • The World's Great Love Songs, London 280
  • Mantovani in Concert, London 578

Christmas and religious music

  • Christmas Carols, London 142, 1954
  • Songs of Praise, London 245
  • Christmas Greetings, London 338

External links

Footnotes

  1. ^ Lanza, Joseph (2004). Elevator Music: A Surreal History of Muzak, Easy-listening, and Other Moodsong. University of Michigan Press, 80. ISBN 0472089420. 

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

 
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Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Mantovani".  Read more

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