1. Mantovani was born in Venice, Italy, into a musical family.
11 Facts About Mantovani
1. 2.
Mantovani's father, Benedetto Paolo "Bismarck" Mantovani, was a violinist and served as the concertmaster of La Scala opera house's orchestra in Milan, under the baton of Arturo Toscanini.
3.
Mantovani was musical director for a large number of musicals and other plays, including Noel Coward's Pacific 1860 and Vivian Ellis's musical setting of J B Fagan's And So to Bed.
4.
Mantovani worked with arranger and composer Ronald "Ronnie" Binge, who developed the "cascading strings" effect.
5.
Mantovani's records were regularly used for demonstration purposes in stores selling hi-fi stereo equipment, as they were produced and arranged for stereo reproduction.
6.
Mantovani became the first person to sell a million stereophonic records.
7.
Mantovani recorded for Decca and London Records the US arm of the Decca Record Company, exclusively.
8.
Mantovani recorded in excess of 50 albums on that label, many of which were Top 40 hits.
9.
Similarly, Mantovani Plays Music From 'Exodus' and Other Great Themes made it to the Top Ten in 1961, with over one million albums sold.
10.
Mantovani starred in his own syndicated television series, Mantovani, which was produced in England and which aired in the United States in 1959.
11.
Mantovani died at a care home in Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent.