maria monti: il bestario

2018 repress. Holidays Records present a reissue of Maria Monti's Il Bestiario, originally released in 1974. Maria Monti's legendary Il Bestiario is a prime example of the avant-garde art-song of the 1970s. Known for her renderings of Italian popular songs, Maria Monti is an Italian singer and actress with a noteworthy career: cabaret singer in the '60s, ambitious avant-garde folk artist in the '70s, and starring in films by directors as such as Sergio Leone -- Fistful Of Dynamite (1971) -- and Bernardo Bertolucci -- 1900 (1976). Il Bestiario is a near perfect emblem of the fascinating territory gained through collaboration. It enlisted the radical poet Aldo Braibanti as its lyricist, features arrangements and synthesizer from Alvin Curran (Musica Elettronica Viva), the baritone saxophone of Roberto Laneri (Prima Materia), as well as the soprano saxophone of jazz legend Steve Lacy. The result is absolutely stunning, musically unique within the respective outputs of its participants' long and noted careers. Unquestionably one of the most beautiful and neglected albums of its decade. Comes with a 16-page booklet with lyrics and translations;