Pianist, composer and conductor Armando Trovajoli (1917 – 2013) graduated from the Santa Cecilia Conservatory in Rome in 1948. Before long he was shining as a pianist on Rome’s nightclub circuit, alternating between jazz and pop music tracks
In 1949 he was chosen by music critic Arrigo Polillo to participate in the Paris Jazz Festival organized by Charles Delaunay at the Salle Pleyel in the French capital. For the occasion, Trovajoli performs as a trio with Gorni Kramer on double bass and Gilberto Cuppini on drums
The concert marked the beginning of a brilliant musical career for the pianist that would see him divide his time between jazz, Italian pop music, composing and performing music for films and plays
In the early 1950s he came to success with the radio program Eclipse, which saw him take turns with Piero Piccioni conducting a jazz orchestra. The broadcast presents for the first time in Italy a jazz-like performance performed by a 14-piece string ensemble
As a result of his excellent results with Italian audiences, RAI was persuaded to choose him as director of the Italian radio and television’sOrchestra di Musica Leggera. During the summer season, the orchestra moved to the “Capannina” in Forte dei Marmi, a famous fashionable venue in which the Roman pianist had performed years earlier with the Jazz Orchestra
The performances made by Armando Trovajoli with his orchestra at Room A in Via Asiago are released on several records, including one entitled The Beat Generation
The pianist would serve as conductor of the RAI Orchestra until 1960; from that year on, he would devote himself to composing film scores and music for plays. Collaborates with important Italian directors: Vittorio De Sica, Dino Risi, Luigi Magni, Ettore Scola
Essential Discography: Trovajoli Jazz Piano (1959 – RCA Italiana), The Beat Generation (1960 – RCA), Ieri Oggi Domani (1963 – CAM)
