Aktuala were a pioneering world music

World music

World music is a term with widely varying definitions, often encompassing music which is primarily identified as another genre. This is evidenced by world music definitions such as "all of the music in the world" or "somebody else's local music"...

 band from Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

, although their often categorised as progressive rock

Progressive rock

Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...

, psychedelic

Psychedelic

The term psychedelic is derived from the Greek words ψυχή and δηλοῦν , translating to "soul-manifesting". A psychedelic experience is characterized by the striking perception of aspects of one's mind previously unknown, or by the creative exuberance of the mind liberated from its ostensibly...

, or avant garde. The name comes from the Esperanto

Esperanto

is the most widely spoken constructed international auxiliary language. Its name derives from Doktoro Esperanto , the pseudonym under which L. L. Zamenhof published the first book detailing Esperanto, the Unua Libro, in 1887...

 for "contemporary". Their music has been describe as sounding like that of the English group Third Ear Band

Third Ear Band

Third Ear Band evolved within the London alternative and free-music scene of the mid 1960s.-History:Members came from The Giant Sun Trolley and The People Band to create an improvised music drawing on Eastern raga forms, European folk, experimental and medieval influences...

.

They formed in 1972 in Milan

Milan

Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...

 by husband and wife team Walter

Walter Maioli

Walter Maioli is an Italian researcher, paleorganologist, poly-instrumentalist and composer.Specialized in experimental archaeology and music, in particular that of archaic civilization. He has been researching the music of antiquity and prehistory for more than 35 years...

 and Laura Maioli who were collectors and performers of ancient and ethnic instruments. For a while the group lived together on a musical commune, "picking olives and playing music". They played unconventional venues including asylums and wharfs.

They signed with the Bla Bla label and released their debut, self-titled album in 1973. Two members, Lino Vaccina and Walter Maioli, left soon afterwards to pursue a collaboration with Trilok Gurtu. All three returned for their second album, La Terra, which was released in 1974. Following this, the band moved to Morocco

Morocco

Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...

 to produce their third album, Tappeto Volante, in 1976.

Many of the band members went on to other music ventures. Maioli went on to the Futuro Antico

Futuro Antico (band)

Futuro Antico is a pioneering World Music group comprising Walter Maioli with Riccardo Sinigaglia and Gabin Dabiré...

 project, Cavallanti to the band Muzik Circus, Gurtu to world music.

Members

• Walter Maioli
  Walter Maioli
  Walter Maioli is an Italian researcher, paleorganologist, poly-instrumentalist and composer.Specialized in experimental archaeology and music, in particular that of archaic civilization. He has been researching the music of antiquity and prehistory for more than 35 years...
  
  : oboe, flute, harmonica, ethnic and self-designed and made "ancient" woodwind and percussion instruments, studio treatments 1973 - 1976
• Daniele Cavallanti: Saxes 1973 - 1976
• Antonio Cerantola: Guitar 1973 - 1976
• Laura Maioli: percussioni 1973
• Lino Vaccina: percussioni 1973 - 1974
• Otto Corrado: saxes, flute 1974
• Attilio Zanchi: guitar 1974
• Marjon Klok: harp 1974 - 1976
• Trilok Gurtu: percussion 1974 - 1976
• Kela Rangoni Macchiavelli: percussioni 1976
• Fabrizio Cassanoi: sitar 1976

Discography

• Aktuala
  Aktuala (album)
  Aktuala is the first studio album by Italian world music pioneers Aktuala. It was released on Bla Bla records in 1972.The inner sleeve of the record features the large range of instruments used...
  
   LP (Bla Bla, 1973)
• La Terra (The Earth) LP (Bla Bla, 1974)
• Tapetto Volante (Flying Carpet) LP (Bla Bla, 1976)

External links

• Walter Maioli's Aktuala page
• Soundohm artist's page for Aktuala
• Page on Italianprog for Aktuala
• Prog Archives page for Aktuala
• [ Aktuala profile] on Allmusic