ROME-At the electronic music festival 'Emufest' this month, composer, writer, and pianist Mario Bertoncini and two students assembled magnificent sounds of mechanics, school teachers and tinkering-toddlers.

Along with the performance, Oct. 7 marked Bertoncini's birthday. Eighty years ago the audio-craftsman was born in Rome. He studied music composition, piano, and electronic music during university and in 1974 became Artist-in-Residence at the German Academic Exchange Service in Berlin where he created open air kinetic sound-sculptures for a show at the Berliner Festwochen.

 At the start of the 40-minute programme, Mr Bertoncini stationed himself in front of an amplified sound panel with two apprentices on each side to perform an older piece of his own, “Epitaffio” in memory of a Concert, which utilizes texts from Henry Miller’s Tropic of Cancer.

 The student to Mario’s left, Leonardo Zaccone, created rough, soft, dobby, and fuller swipes with chalk and a slate-board. Lively and active, his head moved back and forth while reading his composition book and writing messages.

‘A polite form of self-imposed torture, the concert. No one is listening anymore. The guy next to me is sleeping soundly. Why shouldn’t he?’

 More layers of sound were added while erasing his chalk notes. The student to Mario's right, Giuseppe Silvi, used one metal tool and skipped it around one thin slab of wood, alternating the pace.

In the centre, Mr Bertoncini's palette displayed several more textures than his companions. Privileged with more choice, he seemed to determine the piece's course from its slow and gradual rising to its quick deterioration.

 During the second half, Bertoncini performed solo in John Cage’s Suite for Toy Piano. His overall essence beamed coolness, concentration and intelligence, his fingers meanwhile shed playfulness as they piddled back and forth from a black grand to a mini white piano.

 During the last piece, John Cage’s Cartridge Music: Harmony teetered, while Leonardo Zaccone, Giuseppe Silvi and another student magivered a table full of aluminum slink-ies, springs, iron brillo-pads, screws, bolts, microphone stands, and water droplets for the final 20-minute piece. They watched each other, read notes from the book, and gradually built multiple and ever-transforming layers of reverberation.

 For both first-time listeners and long-time followers of Bertoncini and electronic music, the performance fulfilled. Smiles and excited reactions from the audience persisted as in new noises consistently entered in and out.

 The concert was a part of 'Emufest', an Electronic festival that ran from Oct. 7-17.

For more information and a full programme visit: http://www.emufest.org/emufest_en/index_en.htm