"Victor's voice soars high and penetrates the heart"
Eleonora Bagarotti, Libertà
It might not be entirely accurate to call Victor Vertunni a renaissance man. Renaissance implies a rebirth of sorts, whereas Vertunni comes across as an old musical soul; not so much plucking items from the past and giving them new voice, but speaking and singing from some deep ancestral or universal memory that has never required remaking. The attraction to the works of William Blake seems almost natural in this light. Blake was renowned in his time for both the musical flow of his poetry, but also for the melodies he would craft for them, almost by accident. Without any formal music training, Blake was cited by music professors of his and later times for his musical ability. While none of that music has filtered down through the years, Victor Vertunni has provided fitting musical backdrops for Blake's creations. The album, William Blake's Songs Of Innocence And Of Experience, is an often seamless marriage between Blake's fluid poetry and Vertunni's arrangements.
William Blake 'the bard'
"Blake's earliest poetry was evidently circulated, not as printed books or as manuscripts but as songs" G.E. Bentley Jr The Stranger from Paradise
England's greatest visionary artist and poet William Blake (1757-1827) was born ahead of his time and his work was not widely appreciated or understood until our own day. A number of prominent twentieth century writers such as WB Yates and Aldous Huxley, and singer-songwriters like Jim Morisson, Patti Smith, Bob Dylan, John Lennon, Joan Baez, Joni Mitchell and Bruce Springsteen were inspired by Blake and today his popularity has reached global proportions. There are over 13 million hits on google (compared to around 12 million for Picasso) and almost 2 million alone for Songs of Innocence and of Experience.
Being the father of English Romanticism, William Blake is read in schools, yet his poetry is often extracted from its visual setting in student anthologies. The musical dimension of Blake's visionary art is almost entirely overlooked. Yet music, song-writing and singing are an integral part of his overall creative process and practice. According to his friend J.T. Smith, Blake 'was entirely unacquainted with the science of music', yet, 'his ear was so good, his tunes were sometimes most singularly beautiful, and were noted down by musical professors.' Unfortunately, no trace of them has surfaced to date...
More on Blake.....
Victor Vertunni
Victor is a London born actor and singer-songwriter now living in Italy. After graduating in theatre studies at the University of East Anglia he worked on a variety of theatre productions before co-founding the international theatre ensemble Theatre of Eternal Values. He has performed his original musical adaptations of William Blake's Songs of Innocence and of Experience in venues and festivals across Europe and in the USA. The song Ah, Sun-Flower is featured in the award winning motion picture, The Italian Key. Other songs are part of the theatrical production Eternity in an Hour, first performed at the Helsinki International Arts Festival 2008 followed by performances in Italy, Switzerland, Turkey and USA at The New York International Fringe Theatre Festival 2010.
"I believe that the Songs of Innocence and of Experience need to be sung and heard to be fully appreciated".
"This CD has come to fruition in its current form thanks to the rays of musical sunshine that my talented sons and friends have cast on a handful of simple tunes. It is a labour of love that has grown in unpredictable bursts of inspiration since my student days. In the late 90s I started singing them to friends during the warm summer evenings at our home in Italy. Eventually this lead to concerts around Europe and an unplugged acoustic recording in 2004, which is the basis of the more elaborate and contemporary arrangements in the current CD. In 2005 my collaboration with actors in Theatre of Eternal Values led to the inclusion of some of the songs in William Blake's Divine Humanity (New Player's Theatre, London West End, Blake250 festival 2007) and Eternity in a Hour in which I play the role of Bard. In 2010 Ah! Sun-Flower was chosen by the Director Rosa Karo and film music composer Tuomas Kantelinen for the soundtrack of the award-winning motion picture "The Italian Key" (released 2011)".
Victor Vertunni
What fans around the world say about Victor's music :
This Cd will give a lot of joy, serenity and light to the hearts of many people
(Jorge Lugris, Spain)
Loved your previous CD: it brought joy and brightness to many dull days, and was a constant companion on many a long journeys. Thank you for your commitment to bringing Blake's songs to life.
(Andrei Banerjee)
This is inspirational music.
(Maureen Goodman, UK, Switzerland)
I am SO happy and excited that William Blake's songs are coming to life through this CD.
(Calin Costian, USA)
Beautiful! I've had the good fortune of hearing Victor & family in person; he has the perfect voice to communicate Blake's inspired message, and together the group creates the ideal atmosphere to due justice to the Source. Thank You!
(Kristine Kirby, USA)
This new CD an absolute MUST.
(Doris Verez, Austria)