The Sicily native's four-decade career stretched from avant-garde composition to pop success.
The legendary Italian composer Franco Battiato died on Tuesday, May 18th in his home in Milo, Sicily according to ANSA.
Battiato had suffered from a neurodegenerative disease that forced him to retire from public life in 2019. Over the course of his four-decade career, Battiato earned the nickname "Il Maestro," beginning his solo career with 1972's Fetus, one of the first electronic records produced in Italy and the first in a trio of albums (also including Pollution and Sulle Corde Di Aries) that presented a groundbreaking and uniquely Italian mix of progressive rock, avant-folk and analog electronics.
Battiato's fourth album, Clic, was released by Bla Bla in Italy and by the venerable Island Records in the US (with a different tracklisting), and is a favourite among record collectors such as Pete Swanson, who mentioned the 1975 LP in his RA Playing Favourites feature.
He would go on to establish himself as a pop producer and songwriter known for a long-running collaboration with the singer Alice. He released his first feature film, Perduto Amor, in 2003, and toured up until 2017.
Listen to Franco Battiato's "Propiedad Prohibida," off of Clic.
Battiato was mourned by notable fans from both the pop and experimental worlds.