Mario Castelnuovo

Singer-songwriter and writer, Mario Castelnuovo (born in Rome on January 25, 1955) is known for his refined, poetic style, able to blend literary and musical influences into a personal voice. His musical career unfolds mainly between the 80s and 90s, the period in which he achieves his greatest success with songs marked by evocative lyrics and sophisticated arrangements.

After an early period paying his dues, Castelnuovo gets noticed on the Italian singer-songwriter scene. He is discovered by Amedeo Minghi, who secures him a contract with It, the label run by Vincenzo Micocci.

In 1981 his first single “Oceania” is released and presented in a song contest designed to discover new talent as part of the Domenica In program, hosted that year by Pippo Baudo; the B-side, “Sangue fragile”, features Minghi as co-author of the music.

The following year Castelnuovo takes part in the 1982 Sanremo Festival with “Sette fili di canapa”, a track that also gives its title to his first album, again produced by Minghi, which enjoys decent success. “Sette fili di canapa” stirs up controversy with lines like “C’erano sette Cristi a Follonica ed un ateo sul Sinai bivaccava e aspettava”, but above all because of its reference to hemp. “State broadcaster Rai even threatened to pull the song, they thought it was about drugs, police showed up at my hotel and I had to explain the lyrics line by line,” Castelnuovo would later recall. Fortunately, Italians were eventually allowed to hear this feat: an obsessive song, tinged with wave-like gloom, its vocal hypnotically repeating the lyrics like a mantra, before opening up into a kind of “false chorus.” With verses full of surreal, evocative and mysterious symbolism.

Two years after his 1982 appearance with “Sette fili di canapa”, the Roman singer-songwriter returns to the Sanremo Festival presenting the poignant “Nina”, whose lyrics are inspired by the real-life story of Mario's parents, who met during the Second World War. His next album, “Mario Castelnuovo” (1984), establishes him among the most acclaimed singer-songwriters of the period, thanks to writing rich in imagery and an uncommon lyrical sensitivity.

In 1987 he releases “Sul nastro blu”, an album that confirms his poetic streak and his taste for evocative atmospheres, though without matching the success of his previous work.

After a period of lower media exposure, Castelnuovo returns with “Venere” (1993), an album reflecting stylistic growth and an even more intimate approach. Despite his distance from the mainstream circuit, he continues to write and perform for a loyal audience that has followed him from the start.

In the years that follow he releases several more albums, including “Buongiorno” (2000), which marks his return to recording after a long break, and “Com’erano venute buone le ciliegie nella primavera del ’42” (2005), a record in which Castelnuovo gently explores themes tied to memory and history.

In recent years, alongside his ongoing musical activity, Mario Castelnuovo has also devoted himself to writing, publishing novels and short stories that confirm his narrative skill. His music, though less present in commercial circuits, still manages to draw a loyal and attentive audience, thanks to the depth of his songs and the consistency of his artistic path. Among his most recent albums are “Guardalalunanina” (2016), which gathers new songs and reworkings of his classic repertoire, and “Luna crescente” (2021), which marks an inspired return to more classic singer-songwriter fare.

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