Musica Nuda

by Jason Birchmeier
 
Comprised of vocalist Petra Magoni and bassist Ferruccio Spinetti, Musica Nuda are an Italian vocal jazz-pop duo whose popularity carried over to neighboring countries, especially France, during the mid-2000s. Born in Pisa, Tuscany, on July 28, 1972, Magoni studied music at the Conservatory of Leghorn and at the Pontifical Institute of Sacred Music in Milan. A versatile singer, she performed opera at the Teatro Verdi in Pisa early in her career while at the same time fronting a local rock group, Senza Freni. Petra Magoni (1996) marked her full-length solo album debut and was followed by a second solo album, Mulini a Vento (1997). She subsequently adopted the moniker Sweet Anima and released an eponymous album of English-language songs written by Lucio Battisti in 2000. In addition, she collaborated with Giampaolo Antoni in the electro-pop duo Aromatic, which resulted in the album Still Alive (2004). Most successful among her recording ventures, however, was Musica Nuda, a vocal jazz-pop collaboration with Piccola Orchestra Avion Travel bassist Ferruccio Spinetti that made its critically acclaimed eponymous album debut in 2004. Comprised primarily of well-known standards, many of them in English (e.g., the Beatles' &Eleanor Rigby&), the album was later licensed for reissue internationally by the Bonsaï Music label. While the duo's eponymous debut proved successful from a critical standpoint, the follow-up album, Musica Nuda 2 (2006), was internationally successful from a commercial standpoint as well, breaking into the French albums chart for seven weeks. Running two discs and 27 songs in length, Musica Nuda 2 features numerous guests. In the midst of their international breakthrough success, Magoni and Spinetti released a pair of live recordings: a video, Live in Paris (2006); and an album, Live à Fip (2007). A third studio album, 55/21 (2008), followed shortly thereafter.