Review of III Movimento – Prog & Dintorni

Defining Tony Carnevale’s music as “new prog” is highly reductive and undermines this artist’s vast body of work. Labels tend to diminish, simplifying complex arts and artists into a quick synthesis. I have never subscribed to this kind of shallow thinking. For this reason, I warmly welcome the Extended Version of III Movimento – A Dance Opera of Symphonic-Rock Orchestra by this artist, without any “labels.” In fact, this double album, first released in 1999, was already appreciated within higher-level music circles. Today, we have a “new” album that reflects a reconsideration of that music, of those seeds already sown, rather than a deeper exploration of the relationship between music and dance—a theme always present in the progressive scene dear to Tony.

It is exciting to talk about and write about this because Tony Carnevale’s art has always deeply moved me. His references align with many of my thoughts, so every time I listen, I feel like a traveler preparing for a new journey

What would music be if it didn’t offer a trip? Very little.

As I mentioned, the new edition has been remastered in an analog format from the original tapes. Additionally, there are “completing additions,” similar to Incompiuta. This was all made possible thanks to a new artistic and technological collaboration with Massimo Pontoriero from SOUNDTRACK Records, who offered the artist new inspiration to create, recreate, and bring to life that language that has always fascinated him more than anything else: the invisible sounds from the depths of the human being, the sounds of concreteness, the body of what can be defined as “music.” And it is music—music in motion, music that expands, music that dances, in a dynamic and light dimension, never heavy-handed: the synthesis of the balance that has permanently characterized Carnevale’s productions.

Among the tracks I would highlight are Danza Sul Vulcano (for obvious reasons, since I’m from the Vesuvian area) and Quadri Per Una Esposizione, which, although inspired by Mussorgskij, finds its originality without resorting to the Pictures at an Exhibition version by ELP, released in 1971. It’s a different take because, while using the original piano material to build different flows and rhythmic-symphonic sounds, new structural forms are added to what was already created by the great Russian composer

In conclusion, the poetic intent of the entire work is to make clear that music is simply music, a non-rational expressive language of the human being, transcending genres and eras. Changes are the representative forms, that is, the linguistic codes

I would add that this music evokes other art forms, from the already mentioned dance to pure theatrical choreography, painting, and new visual expressions such as light art or body art

I won’t go on further. There’s much more to say and clarify, so it’s best to move directly to the listening experience because, as the great Frank Zappa once said, “Writing about music is like dancing about architecture”