Agricantus has performed a mixture of musical styles, languages and dialects, modern sounds and archaic musical instruments, through three decades of music. They reached their artistic maturity in the second part of the 1990s, following a particularly prosperous period for
world music production in Italy. Their history can then be divided into these main periods.
1979–1994 In their early years, Agricantus were inspired by the reinterpretation of Andean music and South American popular culture, particularly associated with the
Nueva Canción movement. In the early 1980s, the group became involved in the Sicilian folk environment, engaging with artists and cultural figures linked to popular music traditions. This context provided stimulus and inspiration for the continuation of their artistic path, alongside active engagement in the promotion of popular music in Sicily. In 1984, the group founded a cooperative in Palermo bearing the same name, through which they organized numerous concerts throughout Europe and participated in international folk and world music festivals. Alongside their artistic activity, between 1984 and 1990 the group and the cooperative carried out cultural initiatives in Sicily, including educational projects for schools, support for emerging artistic realities, and solidarity campaigns. Between the second half of the 1980s and the early 1990s, Agricantus developed original projects, including the experience known as AGAVE, which led to independent musical productions. Agricantus made their discographic debut in 1993 with the album
Gnanzù, recorded in Klagenfurt and co-produced by the association Tabbali—responsible for managing the group and its name—and TonStudio Karinthia.The album, dedicated to the musical traditions of Southern Italy, resulted from extensive research into oral tradition materials recorded in the field and reinterpreted through the use of new technologies alongside traditional instruments. Agricantus developed a mature musical language at the beginning of the 1990s with the release of
Gnanzù! 1995–2008 Since 1995, following a signature of a discographic contract with
Compagnia Nuove Indye (CNI) and the production directed by
Paolo Dossena the band produced more "thematic discs" (concept albums) in which there is the frequent use of mixtures between European and non-European languages side-by-side with the
Sicilian language, on the creation of the soundtrack for the TV movie
Il figlio della luna (2007) by Gianfranco Albano and Luna khîna published by Rai Trade. By the end of 2008, the collaboration between some of the group’s long-standing members came to an end, marking the conclusion of a phase in the band’s history.
Later developments Since 2008, after a hiatus of several years, distinct artistic paths have developed from the Agricantus experience, continuing, in various forms, to draw on the group's history and repertoire. In particular, some of the subsequent musical production, including record releases, concerts, and soundtracks, has been presented and reviewed by the italian press as a continuation of Agricantus's activity (the latter under the musical direction of Mario Crispi), maintaining the use of the group's name in artistic communications and in recording and concert contexts. Over the following years, new musical productions and collaborations in the film and multimedia fields have been documented, attributable to this artistic continuity, as attested by press articles, reviews, and dedicated cultural programs. At the same time, an independent artistic project was also developed linked to the figure of Tonj Acquaviva, who, after having produced an album under the aegis of the band, produced record releases and documented concert activities up until 2014, associating his name with the band. In 2024 Tonj Acquaviva passed away. == Discography ==