Piero Umiliani
Along with composers Piero Piccioni, Riz Ortolani, and Armando Sciascia, Piero Umiliani is one of the unsung heroes of soundtrack music. Incorporating styles like jazz, easy listening/lounge, rock, funk, and bossa nova to a genre largely dominated by orchestral scores, he penned some of the most outstanding film music from the '60s and '70s with over 150 titles under his belt.
Born in Florence in 1926, his interest in music sprang from a very early age, leading to his enrollment in the conservatory of his native town. After moving to Rome and playing in a jazz octet, Umiliani inaugurated his career in cinema with the documentary Piccola Suite Americana per Quattro Ance (1954), followed by a string of commissions mainly for Italian exploitation movies of little repercussion. His soundtrack to the 1968 pseudo-documentary Svezia, Inferno e Paradiso won worldwide acclaim thanks to the inclusion of the celebrated hit "Ma Nah Ma Nah," later featured in The Muppet Show. Some remarkable titles in Umiliani's discography include La Ragazza Dalla Pelle di Luna (1974), La Morte Bussa Due Volte (1969), Il Corpo (1974), and 5 Bambole per la Luna d'Agosto (1970), an indisputable masterpiece of the genre combining outlandish samba, Hammond-centered jazz, heavy brass sections, harpsichords, and sexy female choruses in a fantastic collection that has echoes in the work of eccentric pop bands like Stereolab and Pram or Mr. Bungle and related projects. In 2000, the Italian label Easy Tempo put together a compilation of Umiliani's electronic and synthesizer music under the title Musicaelettronica, Vol. 1. Umiliani died on February 14, 2001.
© Efrén del Valle Peñamil /TiVo
Similar artists
-
Umiliani Jazz Family
Jazz - Released by Liuto Records on 1 Jan 2010
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Il figlio di Django (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Creazioni Artistiche Musicali C.A.M. S.r.l. on 21 Sep 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Musica Classica per l'Uomo d'Oggi
Electronic - Released by Liuto Records on 20 Dec 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Piero Umiliani e il suo complesso (Remastered)
Pop - Released by Carosello Records on 1 Jul 1961
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Suspence Elettronica
Electronic - Released by Liuto Records on 20 Dec 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
La ragazza fuori strada (Outtakes)
Miscellaneous - Released by Easy Tempo - Right Tempo on 1 Jan 1975
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Il corpo (Outtakes)
Miscellaneous - Released by Easy Tempo - Right Tempo on 1 Jan 1974
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Love themes in music: An Italian Love Story
Armando Trovajoli, Piero Umiliani, Piero Piccioni
Classical - Released by UME - Global Clearing House on 10 Feb 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Boccaccio '70 (Original movie soundtrack)
Nino Rota, Armando Trovajoli, Piero Umiliani
Film Soundtracks - Released by Disques Cinémusique on 6 Jan 2017
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Percussioni ed effetti speciali
Jazz - Released by Liuto Records on 3 Jan 1972
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Vai avanti tu che mi vien da ridere / C'è un fantasma nel mio letto (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Nazionalmusic S.a.s. on 9 Jul 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Le isole dell'amore (Colonna sonora originale del film di Pino De Martino)
Miscellaneous - Released by Cinevox Record on 1 Jan 1971
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Il marchio di Kriminal (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Nazionalmusic S.a.s. on 30 Oct 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Gli italiani e l'industria (Colonna sonora originale del documentario tv)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Liuto - Four Flies on 2 Jan 2017
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Motivi Allegri e Distensivi
Pop - Released by Liuto Records on 20 Dec 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Intrigo a Los Angeles (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Creazioni Artistiche Musicali C.A.M. S.r.l. on 1 Jan 1964
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Crisantemi per un branco di carogne (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Creazioni Artistiche Musicali C.A.M. S.r.l. on 14 Jun 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Ode to Duke Ellington
Jazz - Released by Easy Tempo - Right Tempo on 1 Jan 1974
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Il ponte dell'Asia (Colonna Sonora del documentario televisivo)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Liuto - Four Flies on 23 Apr 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
A cavallo della tigre (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack / Extended Version)
Film Soundtracks - Released by Decca (UMO) Classics (CAM) on 28 May 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo