Annunzio Paolo Mantovani
| Mantovani | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Annunzio Paolo Mantovani |
| Also known as | Tulio Trapani |
| Born |
15 November 1905 Venice, Veneto, Italy |
| Origin | Italian |
| Died | 29 March 1980 (aged 74) Tunbridge Wells, Kent, England |
| Genres | Light music |
| Occupation(s) |
conductor composer light entertainer |
| Years active | 1939–1980 |
| Associated acts | David Whitfield |
Annunzio Paolo Mantovani (Italian pronunciation: [anˈnuntsjo ˈpaːolo mantoˈvaːni]) (15 November 1905 – 29 March 1980), known as Mantovani, was an Anglo-Italian conductor, composer and light orchestra-styled entertainer with a cascading strings musical signature. The book British Hit Singles & Albums states that he was "Britain's most successful album act before the Beatles...the first act to sell over one million stereo albums and [have] six albums simultaneously in the US Top 30 in 1959".
Mantovani was born in Venice, Italy, into a musical family. His father, Bismarck, served as the concertmaster of La Scala opera house's orchestra in Milan, under the baton of Arturo Toscanini. The family moved to England in 1912, where young Annunzio studied at Trinity College of Music in London. After graduation, he formed his own orchestra, which played in and around Birmingham. He married Winifred Moss in 1934, and they had two children: Kenneth (born 12 July 1935) and Paula Irene (born 11 April 1939). By the time World War II broke out, his orchestra was one of the most popular British dance bands, both on BBC radio broadcasts and in live performances.
He was also musical director for a large number of musicals and other plays, including Noël Coward's Pacific 1860 (1946) and Vivian Ellis's musical setting of J. B. Fagan's And So to Bed (1951). After the war, he concentrated on recording, and eventually gave up live performance altogether. He worked with arranger and composer Ronald "Ronnie" Binge, who developed the "cascading strings" effect (also known as the "Mantovani sound"). His records were regularly used for demonstration purposes in stores selling hi-fi stereo equipment, as they were produced and arranged for stereo reproduction. He became the first person to sell a million stereophonic records. In 1952, Binge ceased to arrange for Mantovani but the distinctive sound of the orchestra remained.
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