Matteo Branciamore
Parole nuove

Matteo Branciamore, also known as Marco Cesaroni, an aspiring successful singer in I Cesaroni, manages, beyond the series, to have his performances appreciated. The authors of the lyrics are mostly the screenwriters Federico Favot and Giulio Calvani, while the music is mostly by Andrea Guerra and Vittorio Cosma.

Matteo/Marco's discography consists of four albums: Parole nuove (2008), Ovunque andrai (2009), La mia compilation (2010), and Oro trasparente e le nuove canzoni de I Cesaroni (2012). Twenty-six songs, three of which are in multiple versions and, outside the series, a single with Control V in 2010.

First, let me say that to truly understand the songs, it is right and necessary to connect them to the events of Marco and Eva first, and then Marco and Maya. Those familiar with the fiction will surely be able to associate each track with the story's development.

In Parole nuove (2008), we find some cornerstones of the entire Cesaroni epic, not just the first two series. From the theme song "Adesso che ci siete voi", now well-known even to those who didn't follow the series, to the beautiful title track, the crucial connection of the new love affair between Marco and Eva. From "Un mare di guai", which is also the episode that concludes the first series, unforgettable is the crossing between Marco and Eva on the ferry... to "Voglio mordere la vita", my favorite from the first album, with its all-guitar intro that I've always connected to "Le ragazze di Monaco" by Antonello... Rome and its romance. Charming is "La notte sul tetto", with Marco and Eva spending a night on the Cesaroni house roof, and this time Alessandra Mastronardi sings too. More serious is "Tutto quello che ho", always linked to the on-and-off relationship between Marco and Eva. Enriching the album are two previously unreleased tracks, meaning never appeared in the series, which are "Ama" and "12 milioni", not bad; and the instrumental bases of the theme song and "Parole nuove".

The following year, which is the best series of the six, and not only in the opinion of the writer, it's the turn of Ovunque andrai, which reprises the original theme song and offers genuine gems, above all the title track, which is also the title of the 29th and final episode of the third series, the highest point of all I Cesaroni, tears every time it's revealed that Eva's daughter is not Alex's but Marco's. Beautiful song, listen and listen again to believe. Other highlight tracks are "Ogni piccolo perché", about the relationship with Simona (Chiara Gensini), and "Ninna nanna", which in the series is the track added at the end of Marco's album, and there it's titled "A te che non sei ancora tu". It's a moving evolution of a newborn who grows up, and it also certifies Marco's new love for Eva, which will lead him to leave Simona. Other tracks include the light-hearted "Pesce pilota", dedicated to the conflict with producer Criscuolo (Rodolfo Laganà), and "A guy on his wave", which closes the third series, softening the flow of emotions after Marta's birth. "Cosa cambia ormai" and "Sei" are not bad, just as the two previously unreleased tracks "Sabato mattina", with writing collaboration from Branciamore himself, and "Canterò". The best of these last four turns out to be "Cosa cambia ormai".

In 2010, the year of the fourth series, La mia compilation comes out, but out of 18 tracks, only two are unreleased, and one is in double version. "Silenziosa possibilità" is a good track, of a Marco now working at Radio Oneup with Eva, former producer Franco (Luigi Di Fiore), and new entry Sofia (Giorgia Sinicorni). But the other song is better and more captivating: "Tempo per me", sung both in a duet with Sofia/Giorgia, as in the series, and by himself. Every time he sings "la mia libertà" I get emotional... additionally, Giorgia Sinicorni reminds me of Valeria Rossi. It's one of the highest moments of a series, however, less thrilling than the previous three.

Two years later, the year of the Mayan prophecy, it is Maya (Nina Torresi) and not Eva who is the female protagonist of the story. And the related album, Oro trasparente e le nuove canzoni de I Cesaroni, well represents in songs the events of Marco and Princess D'Oyl Aldemburger. The great songs are three: the title track, which in the series has a video where Maya covers her face with a mask; "Mi chiedo perché", beautiful and gritty and even better accompanied by the images up to that moment of Marco and Maya (from the encounter-clash in the Cesaroni house bed to her averting her from being hit by Marco); and the absolute most beautiful, "Ora basta ti prego resta". This last song is played in full in the 29th and final episode of the fifth series, while Marco, realizing he no longer loves Eva despite her return (their kiss on the bed is one of the peaks of all six series), runs to Maya's castle as all the highlights of their love story pass by. On December 14, 2012, at the first viewing, I cried profusely! Magical and pure emotion, equal only to the finale of the third series! Other tracks from the 2012 album include the duet with Nathalie, winner of X Factor fourth edition (2010), in "Non sento più niente", and the unreleased "Spiegami perché" and "Il nuovo me", the latter talks about gel. Frankly, three songs that may or may not appeal, the feeling is quite subjective. But a track whose beauty and significance within the story is beyond question is "Due anelli", dedicated by Rudy to Alice. It's for Rudy what "Parole nuove" was for Marco. The same dramatic tension. And it's precisely in the aforementioned track that Matteo Branciamore and Niccolò Centioni duet, as if the song were also valid for the younger brother. Closing on a high note is "Adesso che ci siete voi - versione Antica Roma", with different lyrics and sung by Marcus with the lyre in the episode Alla ricerca del tempo passato, an adaptation of the Cesaroni saga to the times of the emperors as imaginative as it is decidedly entertaining.

Considering that Matteo is a singer-actor, the level is well above many songwriters outside the set. The technical level would be three stars, but out of affection, I give it 4.