Arthur Petronio

Born Switzerland 1897. French-Italian musician, poet and painter. Lived in Belgium and The Netherlands between 1910 and 1924 and since then in France. Young violin virtuoso studying with Belgian master violinist Eugène Ysaÿe. Played solo violin for Belgian King Leopold II, at the age of 9. Attracted to the avant-garde and visionary ideas of Gesamtkunstwerk. Develops and presents his “Verbophonie” in 1919, integrating sound poetry into regular music scores
Friend with Kandinsky, Mondrian, Cocteau and Picasso. Published several avant-garde journals and poetry books with participation of like minded artists. Wrote many scores for solo instruments, small ensembles, orchestral works, opera,… Met Henri Chopin in 1950 and extended his musical ideas with new possibilities of tape composition. His one and only LP, now reissued by Metaphon, was originally published by the Belgian Igloo label in 1979. An extravagant DIY montage of musique concrète and sound poetry. In addition to Petronio’s voice several female readers/performers contribute to this theatre of voices as guest vocalists. An album as unusual as his lifecycle