Trasimeno Prog Festival, Castiglione del Lago. Saturday 17th August 2017
Once upon a time there was the dream of a “cultured” rock, designed more for the mind than for the feet, a music in which the typical rock energy was mixed with classical instrumental solutions, literary ambitions and great instrumental expertise: here is the progressive rock in pills. This great dream, born in England between the end of the 1960s and the beginning of the 1970s, and then spread to the rest of the world, with particular fertility in our country, still exists! This is demonstrated by initiatives such as “Trasimeno Prog”, an event that, through the cultural association of the same name, has brought historical names of the movement such as Aldo Tagliapietra (Le Orme), Richard Sinclair (Caravan and Camel), Gianni Nocenzi (Banco del Mutuo Soccorso), Osanna and Arti e Mestieri to perform in Umbria over the years, as well as more recent groups that continue to hold the progressive flag high such as La Maschera di Cera and Il Segno del Comando. And this is also demonstrated by Premiata Forneria Marconi – for fans, more simply, “PFM” -, one of the major Italian prog bands, in the breach for over fifty years and more alive than ever. The band is still led by the tireless drummer and singer Franz Di Cioccio, the only remaining member of the original line-up, the one that debuted in 1972 with the album One Minute Storya true milestone in Italian rock. In addition to the great Franz, PFM has another fixed point of reference: the Italian-French bassist Patrick Djivas, whose entry into the group dates back to 1973 (his first album with PFM was The Island of Nothing1974). Alongside the two veterans, the band has often changed over the years, while maintaining its musical identity based on quality and innovation, until reaching the current tour line-up, which features Alessandro Bonetti (violin), Marco Sfogli (guitar), Eugenio Mori (drums), Alessandro Scaglione (keyboards), as well as guest Luca Zabbini (singing, keyboards and guitar).
In the splendid setting of the Medieval Fortress of Castiglione del Lago, the PFM offered its large audience the best of historical production, starting from the explosive start with Hans’s Carriage e September Impressionscontinuing then with The banquet, Mr. 9′ to 5 e Where… when… (part I). From the early 80s, a lesser known period of the group, come instead Play play, Quartiere Otto e Thank goodness you’re there; from the successful project of mixing rock and symphonic music – which is one of the cultural assumptions underlying the birth of the prog – PFM in Classicdated 2013, the musicians have chosen to propose their personal reworking of the Dance of the Knights by Prokofiev, a performance greeted with great enthusiasm by those present. Grand finale with the inevitable and captivating It’s a party, traditional closing song of their concerts, faded into the brief reprise of September Impressions. “Encore” with double tribute to De André: Turn the card over e The fishermanmemories of the historic collaboration with the Genoese singer-songwriter dating back to the late Seventies.
A great performance, which overshadowed the delay with which the concert began. All the musicians proved to be in a state of grace, especially the leader Franz Di Cioccio who, despite his seventy-eight years, showed off an enviable form and enthusiasm – evidently great passions keep you young! And the fans appreciated it, happy to have been able to embrace “their” PFM again in Castiglione del Lago, almost fifty years after the group’s last presence on the shores of Trasimeno (that is, since the concert on August 3, 1975).
Francesco Vignaroli
