NINO ROTA Project

Album cover art for Matteo Sacilotto and his jazz band

Do you know NINO ROTA?
Nino Rota (Giovanni Rota Rinaldi, 1911 – 1979) was an Italian musician who wrote various famous film scores for Federico Fellini, Luchino Visconti, and notably for Francis Ford Coppola. Nino Rota wrote the film score for “The Godfather Part II” (1974), which won the Academy Award for Best Original Score.

I made the cover art design for two albums by Matteo Sacilotto and his jazz band. These albums are part of the “NINO ROTA project.”, said by Matteo:

This a jazz tribute to the composer Nino Rota; who wrote the music for more than 40 films between the 50s, 60s and 70s of the last century.
The tunes to the project are recorded in two albums, Nino Rota Project vol.1 (published in 2010), and Nino Rota Project vol.2 (currently being published) and consist in jazz arrangements of a selection of the most beautiful melodies written by Rota for films such as Amarcord, Giulietta degli spiriti, Il Bidone, La Strada, I vitelloni, Le Notti Di Cabiria (all directed by Federico Fellini), The godfather (Francis Ford Coppola), Gian Burrasca’s journal (Lina Wertmüller) The Leopard (Luchino Visconti) , among others. In writing the arrangements, the group has achieved a balance between respect for the sonority of the original songs and the intention of giving it a new look, without distorting its original musical sense: Rota’s music sounds like real jazz, while maintaining its own character.
The listener who knows these melodies rediscovers them in a new context, with new nuances, rhythms and harmonies, but still clearly recognizable, while whoever listens to them for the first time has the impression of listening to a refined jazz concert, with strong references to tradition of this genre and yet with a touch of modernity.

Cover art for the first volume of "Nino Rota Project by Matteo Sacilotto." in the picture, we see the hands of jazz performers playing instruments in a gig. Art by Dimitri Fogolin.
Cover art design for first volume.

Cover art for the second "Nino Rota Project by Matteo Sacilotto.". There are 4 jazz musicians in a gig. Art by Dimitri Fogolin.
Cover art design for the second volume.
Alternative cover art for "Nino Rota Project by Matteo Sacilotto" in the picture shows the hands of jazz performers playing instruments in a gig. Art by Dimitri Fogolin.
Cover art design for the second volume (alternative version).

You can find more info and track demos on Matteo Sacilotto’s website.