Riz Ortolani

Quartet Records presents the world premiere release of Riz Ortolani’s obscure killer masterpiece for the equally obscure home invasion drama directed by Yves Allégret, L’Invasione. Starring Michel Piccoli and Lisa Gastoni, the plot centers around an architecture professor who invites close to a dozen students to his home for a discussion. The meeting soon turns into a home invasion as the students refuse to leave and threaten their bourgeois teacher; even his wife turns against him. As the night undermines their relationship, important lessons are learned on all sides. Riz Ortolani’s tuneful score is built on a strong main theme, largely associated with the students’ attack: a psychedelic rock anthem with guitar and saxophone working together to underscore the brash lifestyle of the teenaged troublemakers. In contrast, the love theme sounds like it’s coming from the world of the older generation of cocktail parties and marital infidelities. The score is rounded out by a number of self-contained experimental, funky soundscapes, including sound collages and an organ piece. Produced and sequenced by Claudio Fuiano and mastered by Chris Malone from pristine stereo first-generation masters, courtesy of the Riz Ortolani estate, the CD includes an eight-page booklet featuring liner notes by Gergely Hubai covering both film and score.