Marco Testa
vocals

DISCOGRAPHY

MUSICAL PROJECTS

CHANSONNIER

Valse musette, tango, bolero, fado, bossa nova, italian, spanish, french, portuguese, Neapolitan songs from the best authors

The project of a new interpretation and approach that could give to the more authentic and pining "chanson" form a strength lymph is realized recently for the voice of Marco Testa with a role of a singer in the movie "Così ridevano" Golden Lion prize in Venice '98 and subsequently meeting Gianni Micciola, a musician of extraordinary experience, that has accompanied great soloists and national and international voices (Mina, Vanoni, Mia Martini) and that, for that occasion returns to its first instrument, the accordion exactly.

The latin way of Song in the four main romance languages (Italian, French, Spanish, Portuguese) accompanied from the heat of the usual classic acoustic instruments, guitar and accordion, and sometimes placed side by side to topic readings, to emphasize the mutual influences between lyrics and literature.

Spanish: tango, rumba, flamenco, bolero: there are a lot of different kinds considering the great diffusion of the language in many different countries and cultures: a huge collection of songs unavoidably incomplete, but in many different styles.

French: the lyric and emotional burst of Edith Piaf, the typical song that has influenced all the authors from the fifties (Jacques Brel, Brassens, Ferrè), the characteristic interpretations of Ives Montand, the existentialism of Juliette Greco, the irony of Charles Trenet, the immediacy of Gilbert Becaud...

Portuguese: the two great souls of the "saudade" song , the particular kind of melancholy: fado portuguese (from the classic Amalia Rodriguez to the current new interpretation of Dulce Pontes) and the Bossa Nova (the historical Jobim and De Moraes and the modern Ivan Lins).

Italian: from the song more typically italian singer-composer Tenco, De Andrè, Fossati, Battisti, Conte...), where lyrics espressiveness has a preponderant function, to the melodic breath that belongs more to famous interpreters (Mina, Vanoni, Modugno...) till the more complex form-song that classic music composers gave (Bellini, Rota, Morricone...) and an unavoidable incursion in the great tradition of the Neapolitan song

The recital, as it isn’t a simple concert, it is especially warm when performed live: all acoustic, intimate, in the languishing sound of accordion, but even with the vivacity and in the gaiety of Neapolitan, Mexican, and popular song.

Il recital, poiché non si tratta di un semplice concerto, è particolarmente efficace dal vivo: tutto in versione acustica, intima, nel languore del suono della fisarmonica, ma anche con il brio e la scanzonata allegria della canzone napoletana, messicana, popolare in genere.

Some of the repertoire songs:
Amarcord, 8 e mezzo, il Padrino (Nino Rota); Vuelvo al sur, Oblivion, Balada para un loco (Astor Piazzolla); Ultimo tango a Parigi (Gato Barbieri); Cançao do mar (Dulce Pontes); A cosa servono le nuvole (Pasolini/Modugno); Parlami d'amore Mariù (Bixio); Dans mon ile (Henri Salvador); Les feuilles mortes (Kosma/Jacques Prevert); Il vino (Piero Ciampi); Quizas quizas quizas (O.Farres); Ne me quitte pas (Jacques Brel); Canzone per te (S. Endrigo); La Paloma (Yradier); Sicily (Chick Corea/P.Daniele); Via del campo, La canzone di Marinella (Fabrizio De Andrè); Eternally (C.Chaplin); Che cosa c'è (Gino Paoli); Munastero e' Santachiara (Galdieri); Piensa en mi (Agustin Lara); Cielito lindo (Trini Lopez); Vedrai vedrai (Luigi Tenco); La foule (Piaf); Gracias a la vida (Violeta Parra); Anonimo veneziano (Pagani); Come è bella la città (Giorgio Gaber); Estranha forma de vida (Amalia Rodriguez); Moon river (Henry Mancini); Maria (Bernstein); Era de maggio (M. Costa); Que rest-t-il de nos amour (Charles Trenet); Non ti scordar di me (De Curtis); Coraçao vagabundo (Caetano Veloso); O' paese do sole, Passione (Tagliaferri)... e molti altri

Django - From "A bout de Souffle"

THE MARK MELONE'S

A very original band, probably unique in that kind in Italy, the ironic septet of jazz "spaghetti" also called "Broccolino (little Brooklyn) jazz" leaded by Marco Testa, here as entertainer beyond singer, that it conjugates the jazz valence of its musicians, to one lively and winning show, tested with every kind of public

A small directory of tunes that hybrids the american accent "little Italy" with Neapolitan, sicilian, piemontese, passes from the shuffle Louis Prima style, to the swing as the famous italian singer Buscaglione, the Harry Belafonte calypso, and then sneaking Dean Martin, up to the Carosone more sparkling. This is a concert, but it’s more an amusing show, and during it the public participates actively with choruses, clapping hands and extemporaneous swinging tarantella dances: Just a gigolò, Minnie the Moocher, Stella d’argento, Angelina, Buonasera signorina, Torero, That’s Amore, Mamma, Garibaldi blues, Sweet home Chicago, Hit the road jack, On Broadway, Caterina, Mambo Italiano, O’ surdato ‘nammurato, Brazil, On the sunny side of the street, Matilda, Nighttrain, Volare, James Bond theme, Amore fermati, Mambo inn, Che Bambola…

All the musicians besides playing, sing in a jesting chorus (sometime intentionally a little out of tune) that answers joking to the gotten passionate singing, to the strong vocalizes and the scat of the leader

Marco Testa (Mark Melone) voice, arrangements & direction
Dante Arnoldi (tenor Sax)
Andrea Vitali (Trumpet)
Sergio Chiricosta (Trombone)
Stefano Maccagno (Piano)
Claudio Nicola (bass)
Alessandro Ugolini (drums)

The Mark Melone's Live in Milano

MARCOTESTA REAL ESTATE QUARTET

In the 1989 Marcotesta Real Estate quartet has been probably the first band in Italy to fuse the complexity of the jazz improvisation to the dry beat of the urban funk: the Acid Jazz was born all over Europe... but the line up conjugated in this experience not only the rhythm push-button of the groove soul, r' n' b, funky but refined melodies and jazz harmonies, trying to approach to a large public a gender considered (twisted) sometimes too cold because "high cultural", passing through an emotional impact, but that it did not neglect however the quality and the research. Therefore classics of the jazz came reinvented by the vocalist with original arrangemts, with to some immortal themes of the black music

The «Real Estate» project changes, in the course of the time, attempts and participants, until returning active as a duo, accomplice the success (opportunely already grazing and previewed) of the lounge music issue, always part of the ironic and brilliant entertainment side of the singer. Aperitifs, suppers, convention, party of every type flavoured by a cocktail music that become a perfect soundtrack for a Martini extra dry, for an exclusive party.

Voice, keyboards, and trumpet revisit in a lightness of style and foaming samplings this repertoire of international standards with the class of the lightness. And with an amusing appendix new edition of Italian typical songs

Marco Testa: vocal, keyboards & samplers
Andrea Vitali: trumpet &flugelhorn

The duo has his own instrumentation and eventual amplification

Some of the many repertoire songs (only original arrangements):
...Sunny, Killing me soflty, Ain't no sunshine, Lean on me, On broadway, Un homme et une femme, Girl from Ipanema, Quando quando quando, Mas que nada, Estate, Aguas de março, Night and day, Raindrops keep falling on my head, Everybodys talkin', September morn, How deeep is your love, Take five, You are the sunshine of my life, O barquino, Summertime, Donna, Ebb tide, One note samba, Sittin on the dock of the bay, Moonriver, James Bond theme, Acquarius, Just the way you are, Non dimenticar

Real Estate - Sunny