Franco Battiato
Encyclopedia
Francesco Battiato (born 23 March 1945 in Riposto
) is an Italian singer-songwriter, composer, filmmaker and, under the pseudonym
Süphan Barzani, also a painter. Battiato's songs contain esoteric
, philosophical
and religious
themes. His collaborations from 1994 onward with the nihilistic
-cynical philosopher Manlio Sgalambro
have added lyrical references to Emil Cioran
, Friedrich Nietzsche
and other anarchistic
thinkers.
Together with Alice
, Franco Battiato represented Italy at the Eurovision Song Contest 1984
with the melody "I treni di Tozeur
".
, in the province of Catania
(Sicily
).
At the age of 20 he moved to Milan
and in 1968 he obtained the first musical contract. He scored some success with the romantic song È l'amore. After further covers of pop songs, he met the experimental musician Juri Camisasca in 1970 and collaborated with Osage Tribe, an Italian psychedelic-progressive rock
band. As a solo artist, he released the science-fiction single La convenzione (The convention), one of the finest Italian progressive rock songs of the 1970s.
Starting from 1971, Battiato devoted much of his efforts to experimental electronic music
, producing a series of LPs that remained almost unknown at the time, but are now eagerly sought by collectors worldwide. Starting out with electronic progressive rock
with some emphasis on vocals, his music became increasingly experimental, gradually moving into the realms of musique concrète
and minimalism
: Fetus (1971, whose cover was censored), Pollution (1972), Sulle Corde di Aries (1973), Clic
(1974) and M.lle Le Gladiator (1975). Clic
is a haunting yet largely conventional exploration in the electronic style reminiscent of Philip Glass
and even German experimental rock band Can
.
In 1975, he moved to the Dischi Ricordi
label, producing Battiato (1975), Juke Box (1976) and the experimental L'Egitto prima delle sabbie (Egypt Before the Sands, 1977), which won the Stockhausen
award for contemporary music.
. Largely, though not wholly, abandoning the experiments of the early years, he moved to a more pop-oriented style which afforded him ever increasing popularity with Italian audiences. In this period his albums were usually in collaboration with the renowned musician and violinist Giusto Pio
, whose two later albums were produced by Battiato.
After L'era del cinghiale bianco (The Era of the White Boar, 1979) and Patriots (1980), Battiato obtained astounding success with La voce del padrone (The Master's Voice) in 1981, which was the first Italian LP to sell more than one million copies. The commercial success was confirmed by L'arca di Noè (Noah's Ark) in 1982. Songs like "L'era del cinghiale bianco", "Prospettiva Nevskij" ("Nevsky Prospekt
"), "Centro di gravità permanente" ("Constant Point of Gravity"), "Bandiera bianca" ("White Flag"), "Voglio vederti danzare" ("I Want to See You Dancing"), with their original mix of Oriental and philosophical fashions with pop rhythms, established Battiato's status as one of the most capable and intelligent musicians in Italy. Many of the songs of this era contained parts in English and, most notably,
Arabic, a language that Battiato had started to study after a trip to Turkey. Battiato's albums were also released in Spanish and English versions.
Orizzonti perduti (Lost Horizons, 1983), which Battiato himself called a kipper, was followed by the successful Mondi Lontanissimi
(Very distant worlds, 1985), which featured a solo version of the popular "I treni di Tozeur
" ("The Trains of Tozeur)", originally a duet with Alice performed at the 1984 Eurovision Song Contest
, the science-fiction/metaphysical "Via Lattea" ("Milky Way") and "No Time No Space".
More than 300,000 copies of 1988's Fisiognomica (Physiognomy) sold, confirmed Battiato's status. The album, which is considered by the composer his best for the balance between music and lyrics, contained the hit "Nomadi" ("Nomads"), originally recorded by Alice and written by his old friend Juri Camisasca, who in the meantime had retired to a Benedictin monastery. The album also included the songs "E ti vengo a cercare", which was performed by director/actor Nanni Moretti
in his 1989 movie Palombella Rossa, and "Veni l'autunnu" with lyrics entirely in the Sicilian
and Arabic languages.
Come un cammello in una grondaia (Like a Camel in a Gutter, 1991), was divided into two parts, the second made up by classical German lieder. Among the pop songs, "Povera patria" ("My Poor Father Land"), a poetical denouncement of Italy's lack of culture and honesty, became a kind of hymn of the civil society rebelling against the 1992 mafioso bomb attacks against judges Giovanni Falcone
and Paolo Borsellino
.
Pio and Battiato also worked as composers, musical arrangers and producers for several singers, including Alice
and Giuni Russo
, and for two of Milva
's albums.
Starting from 1987, Battiato also produced several classical operas: Genesi (1987), Gilgamesh (1992) and Il Cavaliere dell'Intelletto (1994). In 1990 he also began to experiment with painting, initially under the pseudonym of Süphan Barzani.
, who was to write almost all the lyrics of his following albums.
After the tentative L'ombrello e la macchina da cucire of 1995, in 1996 the duo published what is considered their best work so far, L'imboscata, containing the romantic hit "La cura" ("The care"), elected best Italian song of the year.
Gommalacca (1998, with an unusual stress on hard rock), Ferro battuto (2000) and Dieci stratagemmi (2004) continued on the same path, with variations mainly set by Battiato's unceasing desire for musical experimentation.
In 2003 Battiato released his first feature film, Perduto amor (Lost love), for which he also composed the soundtrack. The movie won the Silver Ribbon for the best debutant director. However, heavy criticism struck against his following movie, Musikanten, a rather experimental work about Beethoven
's last four years of life. The German musician was played by the Chilean director Alejandro Jodorowsky
.
In 2004 he hosted a cultural show named Bitte, keine Reclame for a satellite channel of RAI
, the Italian state network.
, rather than hooking up with the so-called "cultural elite".
Riposto
Riposto is a comune in the Province of Catania in the Italian region Sicily, located about 170 km east of Palermo and about 25 km northeast of Catania.-External links:*...
) is an Italian singer-songwriter, composer, filmmaker and, under the pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
Süphan Barzani, also a painter. Battiato's songs contain esoteric
Esotericism
Esotericism or Esoterism signifies the holding of esoteric opinions or beliefs, that is, ideas preserved or understood by a small group or those specially initiated, or of rare or unusual interest. The term derives from the Greek , a compound of : "within", thus "pertaining to the more inward",...
, philosophical
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
and religious
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
themes. His collaborations from 1994 onward with the nihilistic
Nihilism
Nihilism is the philosophical doctrine suggesting the negation of one or more putatively meaningful aspects of life. Most commonly, nihilism is presented in the form of existential nihilism which argues that life is without objective meaning, purpose, or intrinsic value...
-cynical philosopher Manlio Sgalambro
Manlio Sgalambro
Manlio Sgalambro is an Italian philosopher and writer.- Biography :- Philosophical production :Sgalambro does not have titles or degrees for business cards: how he has become a writer of philosophy – whose books are translated in French, German and Spanish – is a mystery that he is not able to...
have added lyrical references to Emil Cioran
Emil Cioran
-Early life:Emil M. Cioran was born in Răşinari, Sibiu County, which was part of Austria-Hungary at the time. His father, Emilian Cioran, was a Romanian Orthodox priest, while his mother, Elvira Cioran , was originally from Veneţia de Jos, a commune near Făgăraş.After studying humanities at the...
, Friedrich Nietzsche
Friedrich Nietzsche
Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche was a 19th-century German philosopher, poet, composer and classical philologist...
and other anarchistic
Anarchism
Anarchism is generally defined as the political philosophy which holds the state to be undesirable, unnecessary, and harmful, or alternatively as opposing authority in the conduct of human relations...
thinkers.
Together with Alice
Alice (Italian singer)
Alice , also known as Alice Visconti is an Italian singer-songwriter and pianist, active since 1971...
, Franco Battiato represented Italy at the Eurovision Song Contest 1984
Eurovision Song Contest 1984
The Eurovision Song Contest 1984 was the 29th Eurovision Song Contest and was held on 5 May 1984 in Luxembourg. The presenter was Désirée Nosbusch. Nosbusch, only 19 years old at the time, hosted the show in a lax manner, which was quite unusual for this show back then...
with the melody "I treni di Tozeur
I Treni Di Tozeur
"I treni di Tozeur" is an Italian song, written by Franco Battiato, Rosario Cosentino and Giusto Pio. It was the Italian entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1984, performed in Italian by Alice and Franco Battiato.In a studio version sung only by Battiato, the song was later to be included on his...
".
Early years and experimental period
Franco Battiato was born in Jonia di RipostoRiposto
Riposto is a comune in the Province of Catania in the Italian region Sicily, located about 170 km east of Palermo and about 25 km northeast of Catania.-External links:*...
, in the province of Catania
Province of Catania
Catania is a province in the autonomous island region of Sicily in Italy. Its capital is the city of Catania.It has an area of 3,552 km², and a total population of 1,073,881 . There are 58 comunes in the province, see Comunes of the Province of Catania...
(Sicily
Sicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
).
At the age of 20 he moved to 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 ,...
and in 1968 he obtained the first musical contract. He scored some success with the romantic song È l'amore. After further covers of pop songs, he met the experimental musician Juri Camisasca in 1970 and collaborated with Osage Tribe, an Italian psychedelic-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...
band. As a solo artist, he released the science-fiction single La convenzione (The convention), one of the finest Italian progressive rock songs of the 1970s.
Starting from 1971, Battiato devoted much of his efforts to experimental electronic music
Electronic music
Electronic music is music that employs electronic musical instruments and electronic music technology in its production. In general a distinction can be made between sound produced using electromechanical means and that produced using electronic technology. Examples of electromechanical sound...
, producing a series of LPs that remained almost unknown at the time, but are now eagerly sought by collectors worldwide. Starting out with electronic 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...
with some emphasis on vocals, his music became increasingly experimental, gradually moving into the realms of musique concrète
Musique concrète
Musique concrète is a form of electroacoustic music that utilises acousmatic sound as a compositional resource. The compositional material is not restricted to the inclusion of sounds derived from musical instruments or voices, nor to elements traditionally thought of as "musical"...
and minimalism
Minimalist music
Minimal music is a style of music associated with the work of American composers La Monte Young, Terry Riley, Steve Reich, and Philip Glass. It originated in the New York Downtown scene of the 1960s and was initially viewed as a form of experimental music called the New York Hypnotic School....
: Fetus (1971, whose cover was censored), Pollution (1972), Sulle Corde di Aries (1973), Clic
Clic (album)
Clic is a 1974 album by Italian experimental musician Franco Battiato. The album was released on the Island label, Catalogue No. ILPS 9323. A brooding and intense collection of instrumental/vocal arrangements. Dedicated to Karlheinz Stockhausen the music has stylistic similarities with Phillip...
(1974) and M.lle Le Gladiator (1975). Clic
Clic (album)
Clic is a 1974 album by Italian experimental musician Franco Battiato. The album was released on the Island label, Catalogue No. ILPS 9323. A brooding and intense collection of instrumental/vocal arrangements. Dedicated to Karlheinz Stockhausen the music has stylistic similarities with Phillip...
is a haunting yet largely conventional exploration in the electronic style reminiscent of Philip Glass
Philip Glass
Philip Glass is an American composer. He is considered to be one of the most influential composers of the late 20th century and is widely acknowledged as a composer who has brought art music to the public .His music is often described as minimalist, along with...
and even German experimental rock band Can
Can (band)
Can was an experimental rock band formed in Cologne, West Germany in 1968. Later labeled as one of the first "krautrock" groups, they transcended mainstream influences and incorporated strong minimalist and world music elements into their often psychedelic music.Can constructed their music largely...
.
In 1975, he moved to the Dischi Ricordi
Casa Ricordi
Casa Ricordi is a classical music publishing company founded in 1808 as G. Ricordi & Co. by violinist Giovanni Ricordi in Milan, Italy...
label, producing Battiato (1975), Juke Box (1976) and the experimental L'Egitto prima delle sabbie (Egypt Before the Sands, 1977), which won the Stockhausen
Karlheinz Stockhausen
Karlheinz Stockhausen was a German composer, widely acknowledged by critics as one of the most important but also controversial composers of the 20th and early 21st centuries. Another critic calls him "one of the great visionaries of 20th-century music"...
award for contemporary music.
National success
After having been fired by Ricordi, Battiato signed a contract for EMIEMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
. Largely, though not wholly, abandoning the experiments of the early years, he moved to a more pop-oriented style which afforded him ever increasing popularity with Italian audiences. In this period his albums were usually in collaboration with the renowned musician and violinist Giusto Pio
Giusto Pio
Giusto Pio is an Italian musician and songwriter.Born at Castelfranco Veneto , he studied music in Venice...
, whose two later albums were produced by Battiato.
After L'era del cinghiale bianco (The Era of the White Boar, 1979) and Patriots (1980), Battiato obtained astounding success with La voce del padrone (The Master's Voice) in 1981, which was the first Italian LP to sell more than one million copies. The commercial success was confirmed by L'arca di Noè (Noah's Ark) in 1982. Songs like "L'era del cinghiale bianco", "Prospettiva Nevskij" ("Nevsky Prospekt
Nevsky Prospekt
Nevsky Avenue |Prospekt]]) is the main street in the city of St. Petersburg, Russia. Planned by Peter the Great as beginning of the road to Novgorod and Moscow, the avenue runs from the Admiralty to the Moscow Railway Station and, after making a turn at Vosstaniya Square, to the Alexander...
"), "Centro di gravità permanente" ("Constant Point of Gravity"), "Bandiera bianca" ("White Flag"), "Voglio vederti danzare" ("I Want to See You Dancing"), with their original mix of Oriental and philosophical fashions with pop rhythms, established Battiato's status as one of the most capable and intelligent musicians in Italy. Many of the songs of this era contained parts in English and, most notably,
Arabic, a language that Battiato had started to study after a trip to Turkey. Battiato's albums were also released in Spanish and English versions.
Orizzonti perduti (Lost Horizons, 1983), which Battiato himself called a kipper, was followed by the successful Mondi Lontanissimi
Mondi lontanissimi
Mondi Lontanissimi is an album by Italian singer-songwriter Franco Battiato, released by EMI Italiana in 1985.-Overview:...
(Very distant worlds, 1985), which featured a solo version of the popular "I treni di Tozeur
I Treni Di Tozeur
"I treni di Tozeur" is an Italian song, written by Franco Battiato, Rosario Cosentino and Giusto Pio. It was the Italian entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1984, performed in Italian by Alice and Franco Battiato.In a studio version sung only by Battiato, the song was later to be included on his...
" ("The Trains of Tozeur)", originally a duet with Alice performed at the 1984 Eurovision Song Contest
Eurovision Song Contest
The Eurovision Song Contest is an annual competition held among active member countries of the European Broadcasting Union .Each member country submits a song to be performed on live television and then casts votes for the other countries' songs to determine the most popular song in the competition...
, the science-fiction/metaphysical "Via Lattea" ("Milky Way") and "No Time No Space".
More than 300,000 copies of 1988's Fisiognomica (Physiognomy) sold, confirmed Battiato's status. The album, which is considered by the composer his best for the balance between music and lyrics, contained the hit "Nomadi" ("Nomads"), originally recorded by Alice and written by his old friend Juri Camisasca, who in the meantime had retired to a Benedictin monastery. The album also included the songs "E ti vengo a cercare", which was performed by director/actor Nanni Moretti
Nanni Moretti
Giovanni "Nanni" Moretti is an Italian film director, producer, screenwriter and actor.-Life and work:Moretti was born in Bruneck, South Tyrol , in 1953 to parents who were teachers...
in his 1989 movie Palombella Rossa, and "Veni l'autunnu" with lyrics entirely in the Sicilian
Sicilian language
Sicilian is a Romance language. Its dialects make up the Extreme-Southern Italian language group, which are spoken on the island of Sicily and its satellite islands; in southern and central Calabria ; in the southern parts of Apulia, the Salento ; and Campania, on the Italian mainland, where it is...
and Arabic languages.
Come un cammello in una grondaia (Like a Camel in a Gutter, 1991), was divided into two parts, the second made up by classical German lieder. Among the pop songs, "Povera patria" ("My Poor Father Land"), a poetical denouncement of Italy's lack of culture and honesty, became a kind of hymn of the civil society rebelling against the 1992 mafioso bomb attacks against judges Giovanni Falcone
Giovanni Falcone
Giovanni Falcone was an Sicilian/Italian prosecuting magistrate born in Palermo, Sicily. From his office in the Palace of Justice in Palermo, he spent most of his professional life trying to overthrow the power of the Mafia in Sicily...
and Paolo Borsellino
Paolo Borsellino
Paolo Borsellino was an Italian anti-Mafia magistrate who was killed by a Mafia car bomb in Palermo, less than two months after his fellow anti-Mafia magistrate Giovanni Falcone had been assassinated....
.
Pio and Battiato also worked as composers, musical arrangers and producers for several singers, including Alice
Alice (Italian singer)
Alice , also known as Alice Visconti is an Italian singer-songwriter and pianist, active since 1971...
and Giuni Russo
Giuni Russo
Giuni Russo was an Italian singer-songwriter, who specialised in experimental music after a short successful stint as art-pop singer in the early 1980s....
, and for two of Milva
Milva
Maria Ilva Biolcati , known as Milva, is an Italian singer, actress and television personality. She is also known as 'La Rossa', , due to the colour of her hair, and additionally as the 'Panther of Goro', which stems from the Italian press having nicknamed the three most popular Italian female...
's albums.
Starting from 1987, Battiato also produced several classical operas: Genesi (1987), Gilgamesh (1992) and Il Cavaliere dell'Intelletto (1994). In 1990 he also began to experiment with painting, initially under the pseudonym of Süphan Barzani.
Collaboration with Manlio Sgalambro
In 1994 Battiato began to collaborate with the Sicilian philosopher Manlio SgalambroManlio Sgalambro
Manlio Sgalambro is an Italian philosopher and writer.- Biography :- Philosophical production :Sgalambro does not have titles or degrees for business cards: how he has become a writer of philosophy – whose books are translated in French, German and Spanish – is a mystery that he is not able to...
, who was to write almost all the lyrics of his following albums.
After the tentative L'ombrello e la macchina da cucire of 1995, in 1996 the duo published what is considered their best work so far, L'imboscata, containing the romantic hit "La cura" ("The care"), elected best Italian song of the year.
Gommalacca (1998, with an unusual stress on hard rock), Ferro battuto (2000) and Dieci stratagemmi (2004) continued on the same path, with variations mainly set by Battiato's unceasing desire for musical experimentation.
In 2003 Battiato released his first feature film, Perduto amor (Lost love), for which he also composed the soundtrack. The movie won the Silver Ribbon for the best debutant director. However, heavy criticism struck against his following movie, Musikanten, a rather experimental work about Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. A crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the most famous and influential composers of all time.Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part of...
's last four years of life. The German musician was played by the Chilean director Alejandro Jodorowsky
Alejandro Jodorowsky
Alejandro Jodorowsky Prullansky, known as Alejandro Jodorowsky, is a Chilean filmmaker, playwright, actor, author, comic book writer and spiritual guru...
.
In 2004 he hosted a cultural show named Bitte, keine Reclame for a satellite channel of RAI
RAI
RAI — Radiotelevisione italiana S.p.A. known until 1954 as Radio Audizioni Italiane, is the Italian state owned public service broadcaster controlled by the Ministry of Economic Development. Rai is the biggest television company in Italy...
, the Italian state network.
Personal life
Battiato is not married; he had been very attached to his mother Grazia, who died in 1994. He prefers spending time in a personal retreat in Milo, a little town near Mount EtnaMount Etna
Mount Etna is an active stratovolcano on the east coast of Sicily, close to Messina and Catania. It is the tallest active volcano in Europe, currently standing high, though this varies with summit eruptions; the mountain is 21 m higher than it was in 1981.. It is the highest mountain in...
, rather than hooking up with the so-called "cultural elite".
Trivia
- In 1999 Battiato released a collection of covers of Italian love songs, Fleurs. He repeated the experiment three years later with an album inexplicably numbered Fleurs 3. The median album Fleurs 2 was released unexpectedly in November 2008.
- Battiato's cover of The Rolling StonesThe Rolling StonesThe Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...
' "Ruby Tuesday", originally released on Fleurs, is prominently featured in the 2006 film, Children of MenChildren of MenChildren of Men is a 2006 science fiction film loosely adapted from P. D. James's 1992 novel The Children of Men, directed by Alfonso Cuarón. In 2027, two decades of human infertility have left society on the brink of collapse. Illegal immigrants seek sanctuary in England, where the last...
. - In his album Fleurs 2 (2009) appears Anthony Hegarty, who sings in Italian in "Del suo veloce volo", Battiato's cover of Antony and the JohnsonsAntony and the JohnsonsAntony and the Johnsons is a music group presenting the work of Antony Hegarty and his collaborators.-Career:British experimental musician David Tibet of Current 93 heard a demo and offered to release Antony's music through his Durtro label. The debut album, Antony and the Johnsons, was released...
' song "Frankestein".
1970s
- La Convenzione (1971)
- Fetus (1971)
- PollutionPollution (album)Pollution is the second studio album by Italian musician Franco Battiato. It was released in 1972 on the Italian experimental label Bla Bla...
(1972) - Sulle corde di Aries (1973)
- ClicClic (album)Clic is a 1974 album by Italian experimental musician Franco Battiato. The album was released on the Island label, Catalogue No. ILPS 9323. A brooding and intense collection of instrumental/vocal arrangements. Dedicated to Karlheinz Stockhausen the music has stylistic similarities with Phillip...
(1974) - M.lle le "Gladiator" (1975)
- Feed Back (1975)
- Battiato (1976)
- Juke Box (1977)
- L'Egitto prima delle sabbie (1978)
- L'era del cinghiale biancoL'era del cinghiale bianco (Battiato album)L'era del cinghiale bianco is an album by Italian singer-songwriter Franco Battiato. It was released in 1979 by the label EMI Italiana....
(1979)
1980s
- Patriots (1980)
- La voce del PadroneLa voce del PadroneLa voce del padrone is an album by Italian singer-songwriter Franco Battiato, released by EMI Italian in 1981. The album followed L'era del cinghiale bianco and Patriots , which signed a return by Battiato to a more pop-oriented style....
(1981) - L'arca di NoèL'Arca di NoèL'arca di Noè is an album by the Italian singer-songwriter Franco Battiato. It was released in 1982 by EMI Italiana...
(1982) - Orizzonti perduti (1983)
- Mondi LontanissimiMondi lontanissimiMondi Lontanissimi is an album by Italian singer-songwriter Franco Battiato, released by EMI Italiana in 1985.-Overview:...
(1985) - Echoes of Sufi Dances (1985, in English)
- Ecos de Danzas Sufi (1985, in Spanish)
- Nomadas (1987, in Spanish)
- FisiognomicaFisiognomicaFisiognomica is an album by Italian singer-songwriter Franco Battiato, released by EMI Music Italian in 1988. It sold 300,000 copies in Italy....
(1988) - Giubbe Rosse (1989, live)
1990s
- Come un cammello in una grondaia (1991)
- Caffè de la Paix (1993)
- Unprotected (1994, live)
- L'ombrello e la macchina da cucire (1995)
- Battiato studio collection (1996, collection)
- L'imboscata (1996)
- Shadow Light (1996)
- Battiato Live Collection (1997, live)
- Gommalacca (1998)
- Fleurs (1999)
2000s
- Campi magnetici (2000)
- Ferro battuto (2001)
- Fleurs 3 (2002)
- Last Summer Dance (2003, live)
- Dieci stratagemmiDieci stratagemmiDieci stratagemmi is an album by Franco Battiato. It was released in fall of 2004 by Sony Music, and features musicians like the Krisma and Lacuna Coil's female singer Cristina Scabbia....
(2004) - Il vuoto (2007)
- Fleurs 2 (2008) (3X Platinum)
- Inneres Auge – Il tutto è più della somma delle sue parti (2009) (Platinum)
Singles
- 1965: L'amore è partito (Love's gone)
- 1965: E piu ti amo (The more I love you...)
- 1967: La torre / Le reazioni (The tower / The reaction)
- 1967: Triste come me / Il mondo va così (Sad like me / The world goes like this)
- 1968: È l'amore / Fumo di una sigaretta (It's love / Smoke of a cigarette)
- 1969: Sembrava una serata come tante / Gente (It seemed it was an ordinary evening / People)
- 1969: Bella ragazza / Occhi d'or (Beautiful girl / Golden eyes)
- 1970: Lacrime e pioggia (Rain and tears)
- 1971: Vento caldo / Marciapiede (Warm wind / Pavement) - recorded 1968
- 1972: Energia / Una cellula (Energy / A cell)
- 1972: La convenzione / Paranoia (The convention / Paranoia)
- 1978: Adieu/San Marco - Elektra RecordsElektra RecordsElektra Records is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group. In 2004, it was consolidated into WMG's Atlantic Records Group. After five years of dormancy, the label was revived by Atlantic in 2009....
, t 123 310 - 1979: L'era del cinghiale bianco / Luna indiana (The era of the white boar / Indian moon)
- 1981: Bandiera bianca / Summer on a Solitary Beach (White flag / ...)
- 1984: I treni di TozeurI Treni Di Tozeur"I treni di Tozeur" is an Italian song, written by Franco Battiato, Rosario Cosentino and Giusto Pio. It was the Italian entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1984, performed in Italian by Alice and Franco Battiato.In a studio version sung only by Battiato, the song was later to be included on his...
/ Le biciclette di ForlìForlìForlì is a comune and city in Emilia-Romagna, Italy, and is the capital of the province of Forlì-Cesena. The city is situated along the Via Emilia, to the right of the Montone river, and is an important agricultural centre...
(The trains of Tozeur / The bicycles of Forlì) - with AliceAlice (Italian singer)Alice , also known as Alice Visconti is an Italian singer-songwriter and pianist, active since 1971... - 1985: No Time No Space / Il re del mondo (... / The king of the world)
- 1985: Via lattea / L'animale (Milky Way / The animal)
- 1996: Strani Giorni/Decline and fall of the roman empire (Strange days / ...)
- 1996: La Cura (The care)
- 1998: Shock in my town
- 1998: Il ballo del potere (Power's dance)
- 2001: Running against the grain/Sarcofagia/In trance (... / ... / Into a trance)
- 2004: Tra Sesso e Castità/Le aquile non volano a stormi/Ermeneutica (Between sex and chastity / Eagles don't fly in flocks / Hermeneutics)
- 2007: Il vuoto (VacuumVacuumIn everyday usage, vacuum is a volume of space that is essentially empty of matter, such that its gaseous pressure is much less than atmospheric pressure. The word comes from the Latin term for "empty". A perfect vacuum would be one with no particles in it at all, which is impossible to achieve in...
) - 2007: Aspettando l'estate (Waiting for summer)
- 2007: Niente è come sembra (Nothing is as it seems)
- 2008: Tutto l'universo obbedisce all'amore (The whole universe obeys the love)
singles in Spanish
- 1985: La estación de los amores (Love's season)
- 1991: Pobre Patria (Poor homeland)
- 1986: Yo quiero verte danzar (I want to see you dancing)
Operas
- Genesi (1987)
- Gilgamesh (1992)
- Messa arcaica (1994)
- Il Cavaliere dell'Intelletto (1994) - not published on CD
- Telesio (2011) - not published on CD
Filmography
- Perduto amor (2003, also screenplay)
- Musikanten (2005)
- Niente è come sembra (2007)
- Auguri Don Gesualdo (2010)
External links
- Official website
- Radio BattiatoHispano, the first radio dedicated to Battiato and to his vast collaborations
- www.battiatoweb.com BattiatoWeb, unofficial Spanish website
- Franco Battiato on Europopmusic.eu (English)
- Franco Battiato discography (Music City)