Peppe Servillo: vocals
Peppe D’Argenzio: saxophone
Ferruccio Spinetti: bass and double bass
Mimmo Ciaramella: drums
Duilio Galioto: piano and keyboards
Back in 2005, during our 17th Season, the Piccola Orchestra Avion Travel performed for two consecutive evenings: December 22 and 23. Twenty years have passed since then, and Avion Travel have retained their inimitable charisma, their contagious humanity, and a clear, refined, and original musical identity. These are precious traits, matured over 45 years of vibrant activity, spanning rock, pop-jazz, and new wave, from clubs and small theatres to the most prestigious stages, generously venturing into both theatre and cinema. The band from Caserta first formed in 1980. After a decidedly rock debut and a shift towards pop in the second half of the 1980s, the group won the rock section of the 1987 Sanremo Festival. In 1992 they released the album "Bellosguardo", a record that, for its uniqueness and concentrated beauty, stands as the true musical manifesto of the Piccola Orchestra and marks the beginning of the band’s artistic journey. This adventure was shared with illustrious collaborators such as Lilli Greco (longtime artistic partner of Paolo Conte, Francesco De Gregori, Antonello Venditti, and Gianni Morandi), a master of creative dedication, who encouraged the group both to explore neighbouring fields like cinema and theatre and to enhance their concert performances. In 1993, following a meeting with Caterina Caselli, they released the album "Opplà", a decisive piece in the colourful musical mosaic of Avion Travel, which received unanimous and enthusiastic critical acclaim. In 1995, they published "Finalmente Fiori", the natural conclusion to a musical trilogy (alongside "Bellosguardo" and "Opplà"), and also composed the soundtrack for Renato De Maria’s film "Ho tanta paura". The album cemented the Piccola Orchestra as a precious artistic reality and was described by critics as “59 minutes of sonic magic.” Their creative restlessness led the band to explore new expressive territories, resulting in "La guerra vista dalla luna", a one-act musical operetta featuring Fabrizio Bentivoglio as a magnificent work and travel companion. Premiered in 1996, the piece toured with great success in major Italian theatres in the following years. In the summer of 1997, Avion Travel toured Italy and abroad — especially in France, Portugal, Luxembourg, and Germany — winning over an increasing number of admirers. This intense live activity eventually produced their eagerly awaited first live album, "Vivo di canzoni".
At the 1998 Sanremo Festival, the Piccola Orchestra presented the song "Dormi e sogna" in the “Big” category, earning the prestigious Critics’ Award and the Jury of Quality Award (chaired by British composer Michael Nyman) for Best Music and Best Arrangement. In January 1999, they released "Cirano", produced by none other than Arto Lindsay — the Brazilian-New Yorker genius, co-founder of New York’s no-wave movement alongside Sonic Youth and Lydia Lunch, and a musician with a history of collaborations with David Byrne, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Caetano Veloso, and Marisa Monte. Intellectually provocative, Lindsay challenged the band to merge Peppe Servillo’s lyricism and bel canto with electric guitars and processed keyboards. This work brought the Piccola Orchestra Avion Travel to Europe, with concerts in theatres across Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Spain. Peppe Servillo is more than just the frontman — he is the face of the group, a performer who dresses the songs with his expressive gestures and “rubber” face while poetically narrating the lyrics. Speaking about the album, he remarked: “The trajectory of these songs mirrors the letters of Cyrano. They are born of private, emotional motivations. Cyrano wrote love words for someone else, just as we do, seeking modesty and truth.” He also resists pure aestheticism: “With Arto, we didn’t aim to make a polished product but to strip away the theatricality that was starting to weigh us down, making our melodies ‘lighter.’” This quest for lightness, combined with the ambition to craft songs meant to endure, has always been Avion Travel’s philosophy.
In 2000, they unexpectedly won the 50th Sanremo Festival with the song "Sentimento", a song rich in refined arrangements and poignant melodies, also taking home the Critics’ Award and the Jury of Quality Award for Best Music and Best Arrangement. An unexpected success for a band that had proudly embraced its “alternative” status — sometimes a badge of honour, sometimes a limitation. In December 2000, they released "Storie d’amore", a tribute to Italian song and, more broadly, to evergreen music of the 1960s. The album breathes a strong sense of saudade, aided by a Jobim cover. “In Avion Travel, there’s always a Brazilian spirit,” they say. “Music isn’t divided; it’s about expression. Recording this song was like brushing a colour across a canvas without touching the central design.”
In June 2001, they released Selezione 1990-2000 in France — a career retrospective that includes Sentimento and lesser-known gems like "Aria di te", "Dormi e sogna", and "L’astronauta". Their music balances Italian tradition (Modugno, De André, Tenco) with South American rhythms, best expressed in their distinctive concerts. That same year, they composed the score for the theatre production "La Notte di San Donnino", about the childhood of Giuseppe Verdi.
On April 4, 2003, they released the eagerly awaited "Poco mossi gli altri bacini", produced by Pasquale Minieri (known for his work with Lucio Battisti, Claudio Baglioni, and Vinicio Capossela). The album marked another turning point for the band, featuring female voices for the first time, with Servillo duetting with Elisa and Caterina Caselli. “Piccolo Tormento” became the main song in Mimmo Calopresti’s film "La felicità non costa niente", in which Servillo also made a cameo.
In spring 2005, the group crossed the Atlantic to perform at the Southwest Festival in Austin, Texas, and in notable venues like Joe’s Pub in New York. Their desire to explore new musical horizons led to diverse projects: Servillo toured with Aires Tango; Spinetti began his experimental project with Petra Magoni; Mesolella toured with guitarist Michele Ascolese for Chitarre Vagabonde; Tronco and D’Argenzio joined the Orchestra di Piazza Vittorio. These side projects inspired a return to the studio after three years, with a major challenge: recording an album of Paolo Conte’s songs under Conte’s artistic direction. He even wrote a new song for the album ("Il Giudizio di Paride") and sang a verse of "Elisir" with Gianna Nannini. In January 2007, "Danson Metropoli – Canzoni di Paolo Conte" was released, achieving Gold Record status the same year. It featured eleven of the Maestro’s greatest hits and marked the debut of the band’s new quartet lineup: Servillo (vocals), Mesolella (guitar), Ciaramella (drums), and Vittorio Remino (bass).
In May 2009, Avion Travel performed at Milan’s Teatro degli Arcimboldi in a special concert for “L’Amico Magico” (as Federico Fellini called Nino Rota). This event was followed in October by the release of "Nino Rota, l’Amico Magico", produced by Mesolella, which won the 2010 Targa Tenco for Best Interpreters.
In June 2014, after nearly ten years apart, the original Caserta lineup reunited: Servillo, Mesolella, Tronco, Ciaramella, Spinetti, and D’Argenzio. On March 30, 2017, Fausto Mesolella — the group’s historic guitarist and a prominent composer-arranger — passed away prematurely, leaving behind a career rich in collaborations and accolades. His longtime friends and bandmates decided to continue: “To honour Fausto’s memory,” they said, “means to restore the image he gave of himself as an artist through his songs. This is why we feel the need to revisit our shared repertoire and build a new one from where we left off with him.”
After 18 years, in February 2018, they returned to the Ariston stage as guests of Enzo Avitabile, competing at the Sanremo Festival with "Il coraggio di ogni giorno". In May of the same year — 15 years after their last album of original songs — Avion Travel released "Privé", followed by a long and passionate tour that continued through 2019, visiting major Italian cities. In spring 2021, they released the new single "Il Fiume". That same year, they launched the “Opplà Tour”, named after their landmark album, which was reissued on vinyl by Sugar in a limited edition of 1,000 copies.
