Notes
from the Composer for Fifi #2
Fifi #2 is a sweet ballad
followed by a strong sentimental feeling as it progresses. |
|
|
Melbourne composer
Franco Cambareri was barely able to walk when he first heard the magic
sound of the piano accordion - an instrument he promptly fell in love
with and dreamed of one day possessing.
From the
shores of the Calabria region of Italy adn at the tender age of fifteen,
Franco boarded the steamer Neptune to make the long voyage down under
and soon after arriving in Melbourne he started working to help pay
for the rest of his family to join him in Australia.
Franco
was seventeen when he finally had enough money to put a deposit on
an accordion and pay for one music lesson per week - his determination
to learn meant he spent many a long hour in study and practice.
In the
early sixties Franco spent twelve months in Rome furthering his studies
in music and on return to Australia he formed a Quintet, a band which
met with instant success and enjoyed popularity on radio, television
and at social clubs and night clubs around Melbourne.
With this
experience and after releasing several EP records it was time to move
on and in the mid sixties the Trio Franco was born, a combo that was
to become so much in demand. They sometimes performed even two or
three times a day.
The group
was awarded second prize at the first ever-International Song Festival
in Melbourne and went on to record and release a number of EP's and
a full length LP album. One of the highlights of this period was the
collaboration as producers and actors on the weekly television musical
program "Carosello". There followed an overseas stint on
the South Pacific Island of Fiji where the Trio Franco delighted audiences
at many and varied venues.
During
this time Franco somehow managed to also teach music and accordion
to many young aspiring musicians and today some of Melbourne's finest
can lay claim to having their careers initiated from those early lessons.
Franco
finally stopped playing and performing in public in 1973 in order
to pursue a totally different career path but when he eventually retired
around Christmas 2000 the passion for music returned as strong as
ever.
He decided
to devote himself to composing the music he loved and to date has
written some 137 original instrumental works and has 8 CDs his credit.
The first of these, "Tender Feelings" (released through
Colossal Records of Australia), has been featured by a number of radio
stations across the country and currently most of his music is published
by Groovy Music Publishing as well as several of his compositions
are published overseas by Frosini Society.
Franco
dedicates the music he writes to his family and friends of which he
has many - not surprising for a man and musician whose inspiration
for composition comes unmistakably from the heart.
|
|
