Goodbye Ornella Vanoni. Singer, mistress of Italian music, is died today at the age of 91. Born in Milan on September 22, 1934, he is considered one of the greatest interpreters of light songs and writers.
Mass songs, Gino Paoli, theater, Sanremo: his career
The daughter of a pharmaceutical industrialist and a strict but art-loving mother, Ornella Vanoni has gone through our country’s musical history, transforming several times, without ever losing its originality.
Ornella Vanoni’s career began in an unusual way: first actress rather than singer. At 19 he enrolled at the Accademia del Piccolo Teatro in Milan, soon becoming the favorite pupil (and companion) of director Giorgio Strehler. His debut occurred in 1956, with “Six Characters in Search of an Author” by Luigi Pirandello. But that would be a biting and unconventional way of interpreting it song ‘mala’ – ballads inspired by crime news and popular soul – to make him stand out in the musical panorama, with the publication of his first album in 1958 for Ricordi.
After her relationship with Strehler ended, she met Gino Paoli, with whom she shared a troubled but artistically rewarding love story. From this meeting legendary songs such as “Senza fine” and “Che cosa c’è” were born, but also the first major commercial success, “Cercami”published in 1961.
At the same time, Vanoni he graced the theater stage with tremendous successreceive awards and recognition. But it was Sanremo who established his popularity: he participated in eight editions, taking second place in 1968 with “White House”, and fourth place in three different editions (1967, 1970, 1999). In those years, her image changed: from an aggressive and theatrical performer to a sophisticated, sensual and modern icon.
That The following decade marked musical and personal maturity. After leaving Ricordi and then Ariston, he founded his own record label, Vanilla, before producing on his own.
In 1976 he created one of the most subtle albums of his career with Toquinho and Vinícius de Moraes: “Desire, madness, unconsciousness, joy”it is still considered a masterpiece of Italian music today, so it is included among the 100 most beautiful Italian recordings according to “Rolling Stone” magazine. This was the beginning of his deep love for Brazilian music, which would accompany him throughout his life.
During 80sOrnella took full control of her artistic path. She signed lyrics, created concept albums and received prestigious awards, including the Tenco Award for best singer-songwriter, the first woman to receive it. Recordings such as “Ricetta di donna” (1980), “Duemilatrecentouno parole” (1981) and “Uomini” (1983) show a new Ornella: more intimate, personal, conscious. This was also the era of collaborations with Lucio Dalla, Paolo Conte, Gerry Mulligan, and the return of Gino Paoli in the very successful “Insieme” tour (1985).
In 90swhile reducing the frequency of appearances, Vanoni continued to release intense recordings such as “Sheherazade” (1995), dedicated to the world of women, and “Argilla” (1997), where jazz and Brazilian music blend naturally.
In the new millennium, celebrate 50 years of career in style: concert in Piazza Duomo in Milan in front of 35,000 people (2008), duets with artists of all generations on “Più di me”, and live double album with Paoli. The song “L’impresa”, which was rediscovered thanks to the film Ocean’s Twelve, topped the charts again.
In 2018, at the age of 83, he still amazed everyone by appearing on the Sanremo Festival stage with “Imparare ad amorsi”in a trio with Bungaro and Pacifico. The performance earned him a standing ovation and a Critics’ Award for Best Performance, confirming his class remained intact. In 2023 he returned as a guest at the Festivalconfirming his enduring presence in Italian popular music. Since 2024 he has been one of the regular guests of the program “Che tempo che fa”, showing an increasingly rare ironic spirit and self-irony.
Always pay attention to new thingsin 2024 he participated in a surprising review of his song “Ti I Want”reinterpreted with Elodie and Ditonellapiaga. This project, which was enthusiastically received by the public and critics, marked a definitive bridge between musical generations.
With more than 100 works, more than 55 million records solda life divided between theater, cinema, music and television, Ornella Vanoni it marks an era and cuts across all other eras. He manages to be sophisticated without ever losing touch with simple emotions. Sensual, profound, ironic, undisciplined, he is one of the last great icons of Italian songwriting. (by Paolo Martini)
