Formed to recreate the style of progressive music that was so popular in 1970s Italy, Turin's Calliope was noted for its analog keyboard sound and intense modern lyrics mixed with a hard rock rhythm section. Undergoing several lineup changes, the group pursued a more symphonic style on their 1995 release, Il Madrigale del Vento. Calliope was formed in May of 1989 by keyboardist Rinaldo Doro and producer Beppe Crovella, the former keyboardist of Arti & Mestieri. The group was soon augmented by the additions of Mario Guadagnin (guitar), Enzo Martin (bass), and Gianni Catalano (drums). The new band eventually set down a four-track demo. Realizing they did not have a strong singer, the group added charismatic vocalist Massimo Berruti. Despite various difficulties during recording sessions, Calliope's first album, La Terra dei Grandi Occhi (1992), received strong reviews and sold well. Written by Doro, the album had a strong analog keyboard sound that captured the sound of 1970s Italian progressive rock. The band's second effort, Citta' di Frontera (1993), was written by all the members of the group and found Calliope moving in a more contemporary direction. Berruti left the group in 1994, but a planned solo album by Doro turned into a Calliope project. However, the band was vastly different than before. Guadagnin was replaced by Aldo Mari while Lele Tosches took over on bass from Martin and Annalisa Gastaldo became the new vocalist. Enrico Perrucci was also added on keyboards. This new version of Calliope released Il Madrigale del Vento (1995), which was more in the hard rock/symphonic vein. Following the release, the band regrouped again with Massimo Berruti, Gianni Catalano, and Mario Guadagnin all returning. Francesco Lannocca became the bass player. The reunion was short-lived, as Doro soon left the band for personal reasons, followed shortly after by Berruti, who was replaced by Roberto Coli. More lineup changes followed as both Guadagnin and Catalano left the group. After a year of searching, they were replaced by Roberto Zaffaroni (drums) and Diego Ferrero (bass), while Lannocca switched to guitar. However, this lineup was also short-lived. In Christmas 1998, both Coli and Zaffaroni quit. In March 1999, Andrea Pallisco joined on vocals and Flaviano Sciarpa became the group's new drummer. Although they performed some successful gigs, Pallisco soon quit to get married. Berruti then tentatively returned to the group until they could find a new singer. In December 2000, Ferrero quit and was replaced by Andrea Crovagna. ~ Geoff Orens