Le Orme are one of the “big three” of Italian progressive rock — set alongside PFM and Banco del Mutuo Soccorso as the genre’s defining names. A keyboard-driven trio from Venice, they brought an elegant, melodic melancholy to prog that was wholly their own, and on the cosmic concept album “Felona e Sorona” (1973) they created one of the most beloved records in all of RPI.

The short version

Formed in Venice in 1966 as a beat group, Le Orme reinvented themselves at the turn of the 1970s as Italy’s answer to Emerson, Lake & Palmer — a keyboard-led trio of Aldo Tagliapietra, Tony Pagliuca and Michi Dei Rossi. Across a golden run of albums from “Collage” (1971) to “Contrappunti” (1974), crowned by the masterpiece “Felona e Sorona”, they topped the Italian charts and won international attention. Elegant, lyrical and melancholy, they are one of the genre’s essential bands.

Venice, 1966: from beat to prog

Le Orme began in 1966 in the Venice area as a beat group, founded by singer and guitarist Aldo Tagliapietra and at first named, in homage to The Shadows, “Le Ombre”. Drummer Michi Dei Rossi and keyboardist Tony Pagliuca soon joined, and in 1969 the band released a beat-and-psych debut, “Ad Gloriam”. The turning point came when Pagliuca travelled to London and the trio saw Emerson, Lake & Palmer at the Isle of Wight Festival; struck by the new music, they resolved to bring progressive rock to Italy. Slimming to the classic three-piece — Tagliapietra now on bass as well as guitar and voice, with Pagliuca and Dei Rossi — they signed to Philips and set off on a new path.

Keyboard-driven melancholy

Le Orme’s music was built around the keyboards of Tony Pagliuca — Hammond organ, piano, Moog and Mellotron — much as ELP’s was around Keith Emerson, but their sensibility was gentler and more lyrical. Aldo Tagliapietra’s delicate, instantly recognisable voice and melodic bass, and Michi Dei Rossi’s tasteful drumming, gave the trio an elegant, wistful character all its own, shot through with classical and baroque influences. A hallmark was their pairing of bright, catchy melodies with dark, unsettling lyrics. Where many prog bands chased grandeur and complexity, Le Orme offered beauty, melancholy and song.

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Collage, Uomo di Pezza, Felona e Sorona

Le Orme’s golden period ran from 1971 to 1974. “Collage” (1971), their first true prog album, was an immediate success, its instrumental title track weaving in a theme from Scarlatti. “Uomo di Pezza” (1972) went one better, topping the Italian charts and yielding the hit “Gioco di Bimba” — a charming melody with a disquieting tale beneath it — after which the band toured with Peter Hammill of Van der Graaf Generator. Then came their crowning achievement: “Felona e Sorona” (1973), a cosmic concept album about two opposite, intertwined planets, widely regarded as one of the finest records in all of Italian prog. So strong was its reputation that the band recorded an English-language version for Charisma Records, with lyrics by Peter Hammill himself. The classic run closed with “Contrappunti” (1974), more classically minded and elegant, the last album of the pure trio era.

The later years

After “Contrappunti”, Le Orme began to change. For “Smogmagica” (1975), recorded in Los Angeles, they added guitarist Tolo Marton and reached for a more commercial, American sound — a move many fans found disappointing. With new guitarist Germano Serafin, “Verità Nascoste” (1976) and “Storia o Leggenda” (1977) followed, the band’s music growing more accessible even as its prog edge softened. “Florian” (1979), by contrast, was a striking departure into almost entirely acoustic, chamber-music territory, named after the famous Venetian café. As the decade closed, disagreements over the band’s direction opened a crisis that would lead, after one more album, to their first break-up.

Album by album

Nine albums spanning the band’s beat roots and their progressive golden age. Tap any title for its guide.

The players and afterwards

For their classic years Le Orme were the trio of singer-bassist Aldo Tagliapietra, keyboardist Tony Pagliuca and drummer Michi Dei Rossi, expanded later by guitarists Tolo Marton and then Germano Serafin. After splitting in the early 1980s, the band reunited several times and returned to form with acclaimed albums in the 1990s and 2000s, even playing major American festivals. At the end of 2009, founder Aldo Tagliapietra left after more than four decades; Michi Dei Rossi has continued to lead Le Orme since, keeping the name and the music alive on stage and on record.

Where to start

There is only one place to begin: “Felona e Sorona” (1973), the band’s masterpiece and one of the greatest of all Italian prog albums. From there, “Uomo di Pezza” (1972) and “Collage” (1971) offer the rest of their golden run, while “Contrappunti” (1974) rounds out the classic period in more classical style. Together these four are the heart of Le Orme.

Why they still matter

Le Orme matter as one of the founding pillars of Italian progressive rock — a band who, with PFM and Banco, defined the genre and carried it to the top of the charts and beyond Italy’s borders. Their elegant, melancholy, keyboard-led music gave RPI one of its most distinctive voices, and in “Felona e Sorona” they made a record that fans around the world still treasure. Few bands are more central to the Italian story. For anyone exploring RPI, Le Orme are utterly essential.

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