Alberto Fernando Riccardo Semprini (27 March 1908 – 19 January 1990) known by his stage name Alberto Semprini, or Semprini, was an English pianist, composer and conductor, known for his appearances on the BBC, mainly on radio. He also produced a prolific number of records for EMI.
Alberto Semprini, christened Alberto Fernando Riccardo Semprini, was born in Bath, as the son of an Italian father and an English mother. He studied composition, conducting and piano at the Verdi Conservatory in Milan, Italy, graduating in 1928. He began his musical career in 1934, with some jazz concerts and for the rest of the decade and early 1940s he worked in Italy as a pianist and as an orchestra leader performing a broad range of music. For some time, he was deputy conductor of the Scala Opera Orchestra in Milan.In 1942, he toured the country with his Grande Orchestra Ritmo-Sinfonica, accompanying the likes of Lucia Mannucci and Ernesto Bonino. During the last stage of World War II, Semprini was
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discovered by actor Michael Brennan, who served in the British armed forces. Brennan took Semprini back to England, where his semi classical style of piano play caught on, too.
discovered by actor Michael Brennan, who served in the British armed forces. Brennan took Semprini back to England, where his semi classical style of piano play caught on, too.In the meantime, Semprini kept on having a career in Italy as well. He composed songs and worked as an arranger and conductor in Milan’s studios for many artists (jazz singer Natalino Otto, for example), while also making recordings with his own ensembles, such as the Sestetto Azzurro and the Quintetto Ritmico. In 1954, Semprini, who at that time was considered a modernizer in the country’s light music industry, was asked to be the musical director of the highly popular Sanremo Festival.
Providing rhythmical accompaniment with his Sestetto Azzurro, Semprini worked with half of the participants (Katyna Ranieri, Flo Sandon’s, and Gianni Ravera, amongst others), the other half of them being trusted to the more traditionally sounding orchestra of maestro Cinico Angelini. In 1955 and 1958, Semprini received an invitation to return to the festival with his sextet. 1958 was the year he wrote the original orchestration of Volare for his sextet, with which he accompanied Domenici Modugno during his winning performance in the Sanremo Festival.
In 1957, the BBC gave him the chance to exhibit his talents in his very own radio show, ‘Semprini Serenade’, which ran for 25 subsequent years until 1982. In it, Semprini showcased his versatility by playing keyboard arrangements of old and new songs, light classics and themes from films and shows. Initially,
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the orchestra accompanying him was the BBC Revue Orchestra under the direction of Harry Rabinowitz, but later ensembles led by other conductors took over, amongst whom Vilem Tausky. The show always opened with a tune composed by Semprini himself, ‘Mediterranean Concerto’, after which he used to utter his catchphrase ‘Old ones, new ones, loved ones, neglected ones’. Many of the arrangements for both piano and orchestra were written by Semprini himself. He did more than 700 programmes of the weekday evening show Semprini also wrote a number of original light music compositions, including Concerto
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Appassionato and Mediterranean Concerto, which he used as the theme tune for his radio show. He was a prolific recording artist.
His work was first released on the Italian label Fonit Cetra, then EMI Records, where he remained for the rest of his professional career. Although strongly associated with light music, his recordings were principally of well-known classical music, including the Grieg Piano Concerto and solo pieces by Beethoven, Chopin, Liszt, Tchaikovsky and Debussy
Appassionato and Mediterranean Concerto, which he used as the theme tune for his radio show. He was a prolific recording artist. His work was first released on the Italian label Fonit Cetra, then EMI Records, where he remained for the rest of his professional career. Although strongly associated with light music, his recordings were principally of well-known classical music, including the Grieg Piano Concerto and solo pieces by Beethoven, Chopin, Liszt, Tchaikovsky and Debussy
Perhaps his most unusual claim to fame is the fact that his name was used by the comedy team Monty Python as one of the prohibited words in their The Chemist Sketch (1971). In the sketch, anyone saying “Semprini” was arrested.Semprini with his wife Consuela and family moved to Wivenhoe in 1979 from West Mersea where he had lived on a houseboat called L’Esperance during the 1960’s/70’s.
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People would pause by the boat to listen to him play – he also practised on a grand piano in a storeroom at Clifford White’s builders shop in Barfield Road, in West Mersea.
People would pause by the boat to listen to him play – he also practised on a grand piano in a storeroom at Clifford White’s builders shop in Barfield Road, in West Mersea.He gave his last concert at the Mercury Theatre in April 1982. He told the Essex County Standard that he wanted to give up playing the piano as felt he had given the best of himself. He was aged 74 at the time of this concert. He even gave up playing privately, saying “it would be impossible to go the piano and play badly for myself, so I won’t do it”. This last concert at the Mercury was given to raise money for Soroptomist charities.
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Semprini with his son Chris (left), wife Consuela and son Chevi (right) after receiving his OBE |
Semprini raised thousands of pounds for charity over the years and was awarded an OBE at Buckingham Palace in London, 30th November 1983. In his later years Semprini suffered from Alzheimer’s disease and died at his home in Brixham, in Devon, on January 19, 1990.
(Edited from numerous sources mainly Wikipedia & andtheconductoris.eu)