History of the Orchestra and this Recording Two small groups of classical mandolin aficionados from the Philadelphia area united to form the Orchestra, directed by Dr. Joseph Tiracchia for the debut performance on October 27, 1957. Dr. Tiracchia was uniquely qualified: his father was personally acquainted with Carlos Munier (for whom we are named) and Raffaele Calace, and was a dedicated student of these mandolin greats. Young Tiracchia amazed audiences at age 5 with his musical ability before turning to a medical career.
Munier is fortunate to draw from a rich resource of over 400 compositions: from unfamilar but virtuosic compositions by Calace and Munier to the universally familiar O Sole Mio and Funiculi-Funicula. The Orchestra recorded three LPs from it's library in the 1970s. As the years have past and the Orchestra gets rediscovered by new enthusiasts, there has been a desire to own the archival recordings. Alas! The Orchestra's early recordings were long out of print and only available through dedicated mandolin music collectors.
Now, the best of the Orchestra's early recordings have been re-mastered and re-released as this CD. LP #1 provided CD tracks 1, 4, 8, & 9; from #2 (1972) came tracks 5 & 6 and tracks 7 & 10 were from #3 (1978).
Credits The personnel of Munier have changed over the years, but the following people contributed to this recording:
Mandolins Walter Bruhns, Frank Burson, Philip Caltabiano, Donna Casciotti, Nick D'Amico, John Dougherty, Charles Fronton, Morris Guralnick, Maria Jordan, William Lagakas, Charles La Scala, Richard Manton, Charles Manzi, Sam Manzi, Joseph Naccio, Louis Palmieri, Elaine Peden, Russell Procopio, Frank Semola, Muriel Snyder, Vito Spiotta, Paul Supper,Leonard Rajkowski, Vincent Varano, Dr. Harry Weiner, Gus Zangari
Mandolas Samuel Campisi, Vincent Clerico, Cris Ianni
Mandocello (Liuto) Albert Snyder, Dr. Joseph Tiracchia (Conductor)
Guitars Vincent Bizzarro, Christine De Muro, Joseph Festino, Morris Sidman, Hyman Woloshin
Bass, Mandobass Charles Franchine, Nancy Gibson CD Cover Art Vince Vinciguerra Angel detail from 'Presentation of Jesus in the Temple', 1510, Tempera on panel, 165.75 x 92.91 inches / 421 x 236 cm. by Vittore Carpaccio (1450 - 1525), from the Gallerie dell'Accademia, Venice, Italy.