Osanna
Preludio Tema Variazioni Canzona

LA RECENSIONE

This work, composed in 1971 by Osanna along with maestro Luis Bacalov, is the soundtrack of the film by Fernando Di Leo "Milano Calibro 9".

Unfortunately, I have never been able to see the film and therefore do not know how a soundtrack of this kind fits into the scenes, so I will limit myself to commenting solely on the musical aspect. Osanna had just released their first LP "L'Uomo" when they began recording this album. Luis Bacalov worked alongside the band during the writing phase on three tracks (Preludio, Tema, and Canzona) and arranged the entire orchestra scores.
This work is contemporary with the "Concerto Grosso" by New Trolls, but differs with a greater rock influence. Although it is considered an inferior work to "L'Uomo" or "Palepoli", this album has the merit of uniting all the influences of Osanna's sound in just 30 minutes.

"Preludio", after the flute introduction, presents an alternation of orchestral parts (violins and piano) and harder elements (the rest of the band) over which the first flute solo is woven. The piano introduces "Tema", a song that, unlike the previous one, amalgamates the more symphonic soul with the harder one in a slow and poignant atmosphere. We are thus faced with the first of 7 variations, in which on a typically hard rock base, jazz sax solos and a Gregorian choir are interwoven.
The second variation is divided into three parts: a first slow and vaguely psychedelic one (thanks to the use of the xylophone), a second acoustic part where the singer's voice can be heard for the first time, and the third part where the theme of the first reappears, becoming much more rhythmic at the end thanks to the guitar solo.

Variations III and IV together form a single song: III is dominated by a very fast flute solo over a base of drums and acoustic guitar, while IV, once again introduced by the flute, evolves into a hard piece with strange vocalizations in the central part. While the 5th variation is an interlude for violins and drums, the 6th ranges from harder moments to slower ones where the voice can be heard again, although filtered.
The last variation adds nothing new and revisits some phases of the previous variations. The album closes with the superb "Canzona", in my opinion, the best track ever composed by Osanna, a beautiful ballad (sung) for orchestra in which the piano takes the lead role, marking the rhythm when there are incursions of violins, flutes, or guitar and supporting the track when there is only voice.

One of the best soundtracks I've ever heard.