Born in Bonn around 1620 to Veronese parents, Massimiliano Neri was choirmaster at the Ospedaletto and organist at St. Mark's in Venice, where he published his first volume of Sonatas and Canzonas. He presented his second collection of Canzonas and Sonatas to the Emperor Ferdinand III in Vienna in 1651, later becoming Kapellmeister to the Prince-Elector of Cologne in Bonn in 1664. His affections, however, remained Italian: he married the Florentine singer and composer Caterina Giani in 1654. Many of Neri's compositions suffered extensive war damage in various periods; important musicological reconstruction has recovered parts of them that would otherwise have been lost forever. Concerto Scirocco offers a comprehensive selection of pieces that range from small groups to polychoral ensembles, all of which have a magnificent and typically Venetian opulence.
Born in Bonn around 1620 to Veronese parents, Massimiliano Neri was choirmaster at the Ospedaletto and organist at St. Mark's in Venice, where he published his first volume of Sonatas and Canzonas. He presented his second collection of Canzonas and Sonatas to the Emperor Ferdinand III in Vienna in 1651, later becoming Kapellmeister to the Prince-Elector of Cologne in Bonn in 1664. His affections, however, remained Italian: he married the Florentine singer and composer Caterina Giani in 1654. Many of Neri's compositions suffered extensive war damage in various periods; important musicological reconstruction has recovered parts of them that would otherwise have been lost forever.
Born and based in Genoa, Italy, Giorgio Cesare Neri is a talented multi-instrumentalist and composer with extensive musical experience, among other things, as a session man and author of theatre soundtracks. He was taught the guitar by well-known guitarist Bambi Fossati (of Garybaldi fame), and was for a time a member of the band Agarthi Sound Factory. “Logos”, his debut album as a solo artist, has been described by Neri himself as a personal spiritual journey, or even a prayer.
"Logos" has a most curious sound indeed, a combination of appreciations for the classic Italian prog scene mixed into a drive up spacey rock avenues. In fact the two influences are both well represented, there are long droning guitarscapes that will bring Ozric Tentacles or Djam Karet to mind mixed right in with the classic Italian symphonic sound on other songs…