Music and Poetry

A powerful combination of words and notes

I have always been fascinated by poems, since they carry a rhythm and a musicality similar to songs. They are therefore the starting point for most of my musical compositions, with which I am to amplify the experience and intuitive understanding of the poem.

At this day, I have composed more than 80 songs based on poetry by authors of different nationalities, such as Dante, Giacomo Leopardi, Salvatore Quasimodo, Giovanni Pascoli, Gabriele D’Annunzio, Alda Merini, Pier Paolo Pasolini, Mario Luzi, Andrée Chedid, Henri Pichette, Pablo Neruda, Mario Benedetti, Virginia Woolf, Wystan Hugh Auden, William Wordsworth, Wolfgang Goethe, Rainer Maria Rilke, or Hermann Hesse. I also work regularly with contemporary poets in Italy or France, including Leonardo Mello, Livio Andreatta, Marella Nappi, Nicolas Lenoir, François Minod, Antonia Soulez, Salah Al Hamdami, Jacques Roubaud or Stéphane Aucante.

In some cases, my compositions rely on mathematical constructions from geometry or combinatorics in order to explore new harmonies, melodies or rhythms.

Musical examples

  • Accenni (Leonardo Mello / Moreno Andreatta).
    With the participation of Gilbert Nouno (double basse), Olivier Laurans (guitar) and Jean Carrive (violin)
  • Ti ricordi (Il Gioco del Mago) (Leonardo Mello / Moreno Andreatta).
    With the participation of Luciano Gamarro (voice and guitar).
  • A February Voice (Virginia Woolf / Moreno Andreatta).
    With the participation of Olivier Laurans (guitar) and Jean Carrive (violin)
  • El amor es un centro (Mario Benedetti / Moreno Andreatta).
    With the participation of Olivier Laurans (guitar) and Jean Carrive (violin)
  • Se mi dici sedici (text and music by Moreno Andreatta).
    With the participation of Gilbert Nouno (double basse), Olivier Laurans (guitar) and Jean Carrive (violin)
  • I had a dream (text and music by Moreno Andreatta).
    With the participation of Gilbert Nouno (double basse), Olivier Laurans (guitar) and Jean Carrive (violin)
  • Canta la notte che spera (Leonardo Mello / Moreno Andreatta). With the participation of Wiebke Drenckhan (accordion).
  • Ad un’ignota (Guido Gozzano / Moreno Andreatta).
    With the participation of Giovanni Dell’Olivo (guitar and voice).
  • Di un cielo che è altrove (Marella Nappi / Moreno Andreatta)
  • O animal grazïoso e benigno (Dante / Moreno Andreatta).
    This song has been written in collaboration with Polo and arranged by François Combarieu (Studio “Le Triangle” in Montreuil, France).
  • Une main (François Minod / Moreno Andreatta)
  • Ode à elle (Henri Pichette / Moreno Andreatta) – Text
  • J’écrirai (Salah Al Hamdani / Moreno Andreatta). Arrangement by Benjamin Hincker – Text
  • Tutto è finito (Antonio de Curtis “Totò” / Moreno Andreatta) – Text
  • A part (Andrée Chedid / Moreno Andreatta). Arrangement by Benoît Messinger, recorded and mixed by Didier Houbre at the Downtown Music Studio in Strasbourg) – Text
  • Inferno d’amore (Dante / Moreno Andreatta). With the participation of Juliette Farago (cello) and Alain Acabo (clarinet). Recorded and mixed by Didier Houbre at the Downtown Music Studio in Strasbourg. Winner of the Lunezia Festival 2018 (in the category “Mettere in musica i poeti” / “Put the poets into music”). Text – Motivation of the jury (in Italian) – photos – article
  • Ah ! (Jacques Roubaud / Moreno Andreatta). Recorded and mixed by Didier Houbre at the Downtown Music Studio in Strasbourg – Text
  • Ils cassent le monde (Boris Vian / Moreno Andreatta). A song composed for the Andrée Chedid Competition, recorded and mixed by Didier Houbre at the Downtown Music Studio in Strasbourg – Text
  • La chanson de Romain Didier (text and music by Moreno Andreatta). A song composed by following Romain Didier “challenge” (of writing a song that will refer to the song Romain Didier wrote by referring to the song that Serge Gainsbourg wrote by referring to the song Joseph Kosma wrote on a text by Jacques Prévert). The song – together with “Une fois…” obtained a “Mention honorable” at the Prix Poésie en musique 2021 of the Société des poètes et artistes de France – Text
  • Une fois… (text and music by Moreno Andreatta). The French version of the permutational song “Una volta soltanto finisce una storia d’amore”. The song – together with “La chanson de Romain Didier” obtained a “Mention honorable” at the Prix Poésie en musique 2021 of the Société des poètes et artistes de France – Text
  • Inventario galante (Antonio Machado / Moreno Andreatta). A song composed for the Andrée Chedid Competition, recorded and mixed by Didier Houbre at the Downtown Music Studio in Strasbourg. With the participation of Claire Arbo (violin) and Alessandro Arbo (guitar) – Text
Inventario galante (based on a text by Antonio Machado)

Around Nicolas Lenoir

Edouard Mehl and his wife Céline made me aware of a series of unpublished poems by their friend and poet Nicolas Lenoir, which I started to put into music. Here are the first three songs of this ongoing cycle:

1. Premières absences au soleil d’automne. With the participation of Juliette Farago (cello). Recorded and mixed by Didier Houbre at the Downtown Music Studio in Strasbourg. – Text

2. Aimanté suspendu. With the participation of Juliette Farago (cello). Recorded and mixed by Didier Houbre at the Downtown Music Studio in Strasbourg. – Text  

3. Les Sentinelles. Recorded and mixed by Didier Houbre at the Downtown Music Studio in Strasbourg. – Text  

Music under confinement

From 17 Mars – 10 Mai 2020 the French nation was confined in their homes to prevent the Covid-19 virus from spreading. A good occasion to put some poetry into music and give the possibility to our kids, friends and colleagues to discover some of the most beautiful pieces of the Italian literature. You will find the original text and the lyrics of the song, together with a French translation, in my new youtube channel.

INFINITO (Text: Giacomo Leopardi; Music, piano & voice: Moreno Andreatta; Guitar: Wiebke Drenckhan-Andreatta). The very first song created under confinement…

ACCENNI (Texte: Leonardo Mello, Music, piano & voice: Moreno Andreatta; Accordion: Wiebke Drenckhan-Andreatta). An old song in a new arrangement…

AD UN’IGNOTA (Text: Guido Gozzano; Music, piano & voice: Moreno Andreatta; Guitar: Wiebke Drenckhan-Andreatta). A second old song arranged under confinement…

O CUPO INVERNO CHE ASSALTI CON QUESTI SCUDISCI DI NEVE (Text: Alda Merini; Music, piano & voice: Moreno Andreatta; Accordion: Wiebke Drenckhan-Andreatta). A third song from an old time also arranged in a new way.

SOLITUDINI (Text: Salvatore Quasimodo; Music, piano & voice: Moreno Andreatta; Accordeon: Wiebke Drenckhan-Andreatta). The second song I have composed during the confinement…

LA FELICITÀ (Text: Giovanni Pascoli; Music, piano & voice: Moreno Andreatta; Guitar: Wiebke Drenckhan-Andreatta). The third and last song composed under confinement…

Music and Poetry at the CAES/CNRS Festival

The 2021 edition of the “gala” of the CAES/CNRS took place in Strasbourg at the Point d’Eau, December 4. Here below a video of a song based on a poem by Pablo Neruda.

EL PRIMER MAR (Text: Pablo Neruda; Music, piano & voice: Moreno Andreatta; Accordeon: Wiebke Drenckhan-Andreatta).

A concert around poetry and songs at the Divanoo (Bischheim)

As a musical counterpart of a study day entitled “Poésie en chanson” organized at the University of Strasbourg, a concert took place at the Divanoo in Bischheim, Monday 31st of May 2022. A nice opportunity to play some songs of my repertoire with the accompaniment of friends who are also wonderful musicians! Here below some videos of our performance.

AMOR, CH’AL COR GENTIL RATTO S’APPRENDE (Text: Dante / adapted in French by Polo; Music, piano & voice: Moreno Andreatta; Guitar: Alessandro Arbo).

INVENTARIO GALANTE (Text: Antonio Machado; Music, piano & voice: Moreno Andreatta; Guitar: Alessandro Arbo; Violin: Claire Arbo).

A concert around Italian poetry and music at the Teatro Comunale di Bedollo (Italy)

After a first round at the Centro Congressi Piné 1000, where we proposed a concert based on Italian and regional poetry put into music (see the flyer here below), we prepare a new concert that will take place Tuesday 29th of December at the Teatro Comunale of Bedollo, in the beautiful region of Trentino. The concert is organized by the association “Tebe, non solo teatro” and will present a selection of poems by Italian poets, from Dante to nowadays, that I have put into songs. I will be accompanied by the multi-instrumentalist Michele Pizzini (guitar, flute and sax) and Wiebke Drenckhan (accordion). More information about the programme of the concert will be announced soon in the News section.

A project around the engaged poetry with the Académie Rhénane

I am currently working with the members of the Académie Rhénane for the organization of an event that will take place Saturday 20th of March at the Eglise du Temple Neuf in Strasbourg within the national celebration of the Printemps des Poètes. The recital will be a mixture of original poems (read by the poets of the Académie Rhénane), piano music improvisation, dance performance and songs. It is coordinated by the poet and writer Françoise Urban-Menninger, with the participation of the musician and writer Joan Ott (compagnie La Dorée), the dancer and performer Colette Mauri (Artes Movendi) and many poets of the Académie Rhénane. This will be a nice opportunity to present to a large audience a selection of my compositions that will bring to light some authors who wrote politically, socially or artistic engaged poems. The final list will feature some of the following “engaged titles” of my Poetry&Songs catalogue:

La Rose et le Réséda (Text by Louis Aragon)

Lettre à des amis perdus (Text by René-Guy Cadou)

Ils cassent le monde (Text by Boris Vian)

Mon coeur tu es fou (Text by Forough Farrokhzad)

Sur cette terre (Text by Mahmoud Darwich)

J’écrirai (Text by Salah Al Hamdani)

Brûler (Text by Lisette Lombé)

Si mañana (Text by Cristina Torres Càceres)

More information about the programme of the event will be announced soon in the News section.