Aktuala ('contemporary' in Esperanto) was a pioneering band from Italy formed in 1972. Their music has been categorised as world music, progressive rock, psychedelic, or avant garde. As with Third Ear Band, Embryo or Between, Aktuala cross-bred ancient and ethnic musics (Eastern and African culture) with rock and avant-garde forms, creating a pioneering new form of music that went beyond anything

In 1972 Husband and wife Walter Maioli and Laura Maioli, both passionate collectors of ancient and ethnic instruments, joined with sax player Caniele Cavallanti, guitarist Antonio Cerantola and percussionist Lino Vaccina to form Aktuala (which means 'actually' in Esperanto). This is a furiously eclectic band whose Arabian, African and Indian themes are built around trance-inducing repetition. Apart from Oregon, they were one of the first to craft a coherent, gimmick-free hybrid of improvisational jazz with a pan-cultural approach to ethnic music, although theirs is much more loosely conceived than that of Oregon. They released three albums between 1973 and 1976 and then broke up. Walter Maioli is today recognized among Italy's foremost experts in prehistoric music-making. He became the founder of Synaulia.

Their second album, "La Terra" (74), is considered their masterpiece, surpassing even the more ambitious but poorly recorded "Tappeto Volante" (76). "La Terra" contains four extended instrumental tracks that combine Indian percussion, strains of American jazz and blues as well as Mediterranean and North African ethnic music. It features additional musicians each mastering yet another ethnic instrument: among them are Trilok Gurtu - who later went on to play with John McLaughlin and Oregon - as well as saxophonist Daniele Cavallanti and guitarist Attilo Zanchi, both now well-established members of the Italian jazz scene.

Aktuala's material is not kind to the symphonic ear: it is instinctive, primordial music full of dreamy darkness and mystery. It should please fans of Third Ear Band, CLIVAGE and fans of free jazz and avant-garde.

Many of the band members went on to other music ventures. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.