Biography
This musician belongs to an emerging wave of Italian artists who emerged during the 1990s, driven by countless espressos, crates of unusual electronic gear primed for interconnection, and an occasional nostalgic impulse to extract an accordion for fragments of regional folk melodies. Self-taught from the age of twelve, he later pursued formal training at the Scola Popolare di Musica di Testaccio in Rome. His performances deploy an extensive array of instruments, typically encompassing multiple acoustic and electric keyboards alongside assorted electronic apparatus routed through a mixing console. He also handles both acoustic and amplified accordion, electronically magnifies the resonance of everyday objects, and employs his voice across diverse musical contexts. Like many peers of his era, he moves fluidly between structured and unstructured environments, fully notated scores and pure improvisation alike. Such versatility has fostered partnerships across an extensive roster of European free-improvisation and avant-garde figures. Among them is German bassist Peter Kowald, an originator of the first wave of German free players. Percussionist Fabrizio Spera ranks among his regular Italian collaborators, while British guitarist Mike Cooper, resident in Rome since the 1990s and known for blending folk, blues, and experimental approaches, has also shared stages with him. Further encounters include Japanese sonic provocateur Otomo Yoshihide, German electronics specialist Thomas Lehn, English saxophonist John Butcher, vocalist Dagmar Krause, Japanese tape manipulator Merzbow, and German guitarist and daxophone inventor Hans Reichel. These associations clarify the unconventional character of Venitucci’s work. When a circle of kindred spirits coalesced into a unit, the outcome was Ossatura, an Italian ensemble formed in 1995 that specializes in prolonged, dense improvisations featuring electro-acoustic processing, unconventional sound sources, and intricate onstage cabling; alongside Spera, the group includes Elio Martusciello and Maurizio Martusciello and has appeared at various European festivals plus a modest North American tour. In 1996 he entered Zeitkratzer, the Berlin experimental collective whose repertoire encompasses pieces by Phil Niblock, Keith Rowe, Mario Bertoncini, Nicholas Collins, Lee Renaldo, Radu Malfatti, and Lou Reed; the ensemble issued three albums in 1999 alone. He further participates in Fanfararara, the improvisers’ orchestra led by Tim Hodgkinson, formerly of Henry Cow. Smaller groupings arise frequently within the free-improvisation community, one example being his work with German trumpeter Axel Dörner, and he also appears in solo settings.