Showing posts with label Nilla Pizzi. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Nilla Pizzi. Show all posts

Saturday, March 26, 2011

Addio a Nilla Pizzi

Nilla Pizzi, Italian singing legend has died two weeks ago at the age of 91.

Nilla Pizzi is of course the winner of the first Sanremo festivals, 1951 with Grazie Dei Fiore (Thank you for the flowers), 1952 with Vola Colomba (Fly Dove).
Pizzi’s career started way before Sanremo, after winning a beauty pageant in 1939, her first singing trophy she collected was Voci Nuove in 1942, organised by what soon was to be RAI. (Italian national TV)

In 1944 Pizzi cut her first record, Valzer Di Primavera with Bruna Rattani. Later that year she was deemed unfit for the fascist Italian regime, her voice being to exotic and sexual.
After the war Pizzi’s career took off, performing with the all of the best Italian orchestra’s. Record companies Cetra and HMV fought over her contracts and she was one of the few stars who easily moved along with the fast changing music landscape of the early 50’s.

In 1951 she took both first and second place at the Sanremo festival. Winner Grazie Dei Fiori also broke the record for most sold disc at the time (they had 78rpm discs in those days).

Vola Colomba, the 1952 winner was even more successful and the song also travelled across the world. In 1953 she only ended second with Desiderio ‘e.
Nilla Pizzi participated in six Sanremo festivals as a solo artist. 1958’s L’Edera being one of her biggest hits.

In 1994 she performed with Una Vecchia Canzone Italiana (An old Italian song) with Squadro Italia, a group of veteran Italian singers gathered for this performance only. The song ended only 19th.

Next to all her own Sanremo songs Pizzi recorded many of the other contestants entries, including 5 songs that eventually entered Eurovision. Pizzi sang mainly in Italian but also recorded some songs in Spanish and English.

Here’s a short discography of Nilla Pizzi’s Eurocovers. All are coverversions of Italian entries.

1956 Aprite Le Finestre.
- On EP and 78 rpm (RCA A25V 0452)
1956 Amami Se Vuoi
- 78 rpm (RCA LPM 1378) and other releases
Both tracks also on LP San Remo 1956, where Pizzi sings ten Sanremo songs from 1956. (RCA A10V 0080) 

1957 Corde Della Mia Chitarra
- on US LP Rendez-vous With Nilla (RCA) and other releases

1958 Nel Blu Dipinto Di Blu (Volare) (see comments)
- b side to L’Edera (RCA 45-N 0647)

1961 Al di la
- on 7”, also on LP Recital De Nilla Pizzi (Durium)

Find out more about Aprite Le Finestre and Nilla Pizzi's hit version in the Eurocovers post Holy Priest, Open The Stained Glass Window.

Sources: Nilla Pizzi Wiki, Sanremo historia.

Monday, September 03, 2007

Holy Priest, Open the (stained glass) window

“Holiness is not for the privileged few (…). The Lord has called us to remind everyone that we can be holy in any walk of life, amidst all noble human endeavors; that holiness is possible.” These words were written on March 24, 1930 by Blessed Josemaria, whose birth centenary was commemorated on January 9, 2002.

"The first red rose has bloomed.
Spring is here, spring is here!
The first swallow has returned
And glides through the clear sky,
Bringing good weather.
Boys and girls in love,
Open the windows to the new sun,
To hope and joy
Spring is here, it's the feast of love!"

These words were words written by Pinchi for the 1956 San Remo song Aprite Le Finestre. (translated from Italian)

Aprite Le Finestre (Pinchi/Virgilio Panzuti) is one of the two* songs representing Italy at the very first Eurovision Song Contest in 1956. Franca Raimondi won the San Remo festival with the song and it was covered by several popular Italian recording artists at the time, like Nilla Pizzi, Claudio Villa, Rino Salviati, Fiorella Bini, Katyna Ranieri, Giacomo Rondinella and Quartetto Cetra.
Nilla Pizzi was the first San Remo winner in 1951 with the song Grazie dei fior an she also won the 2nd edition in 1952 with Vola Colomba .

Aprite Le Finestre was a favorite song of San Josemaría Escrivá de Balaguer, a Spanish catholic priest and founder of Opus Dei. He is known to have stated (in 1957) that he wanted people to sing Aprite Le Finestre when he died. You can read more about his relation to the San Remo song here. The article mentions the song as being by Nilla Pizzi, who of course was not the original singer but probably the most popular artist at the time to record the song.

On this website you can find everything about the priests life from his 'fans' perspective, but it's wasn't all Holy Wine & Roses, and his canonisation in 2002 was controversial. Check his Wiki for more links and details.
Here I will focus on the Eurovision song though, and it only goes to show once again that Eurovision often can be found in very unexpected places.

The first version presented here (links below) is a version that was performed at the centennial of the priests birthday in 2002 by the Coro Dall' Academia Filarmonica Romana.
Then there's the Nilla Pizzi hit version, a chirpy version by Enzo Gallo and a version by Ugo Molinari (see Help Wanted). The Ugo Molinary track is from a good old fashioned 78rpm.
A Spanish version was recorded by Los 5 Latinos from Argentina.

* In 1956 the seven participating countries each had two songs in the competition. The other Italian song was Amami Se Vuoi, which ended 2nd at the San Remo festival. Only the winner (Lys Assia's Refrain for Switzerland) was officially announced but unofficial sources claim Aprite Le Finestre ended 4th.

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Special thanks to Bruno

HELP WANTED: Ugo Molinari sang several songs in the 1956 San Remo and even though his music has been released on various formats his songs are very hard to find. I'm looking for his studio recording of Nota Per Nota from the San Remo final of 1956.








-------------------------------Eurovision in unexpected places anno 2007 ??