In 2001, vocalist-composer Valeria Nicoletta released Spiritual Experience, an album featuring Claudio Passavanti, Stefano Torossi, and Nicoletta that includes fourteen tracks originally intended for TV documentaries broadcast by RAI, Italy’s national public broadcasting company.

Valeria Nicoletta – Spiritual Experience (2001) Rai Trade

The album of original compositions includes “Snowland,” “Midnight Sun,” “Stonehenge,” “Pure Crystal,” “Aura,” “America Dream,” “Sea Princess,” “Inca Legend,” “Spiritual Experience,” “Heart And Soul,” “Voice Of Sahara,” “Dreamworld,” “Blue Mood,” and “Night Zone.”

The title track from Valeria Nicoletta’s Spiritual Experience is on YouTube:

The Rai Trade album by Valeria Nicoletta, keyboardist-composer Claudio Passavanti, and composer Stefano Torossi is composed of New Age and spiritually-themed compositions which draw inspiration from around the world. In addition, Spiritual Experience features guitarist-composer Roberto Valle on two tracks. Stefano Torossi produced the album that also is performed by the composers.

Valeria Nicoletta commented on making her first album with Stefano Torossi:

My first project with Stefano Torossi was Spiritual Experience made with the virtuoso musician Claudio Passavanti (keyboards) with whom I had a great musical feeling. I really love this production and I think that Stefano Torossi had a fantastic idea.

Valeria Nicoletta performing in 2013 (photo by Erika Caruso)

Asked about which tracks she liked the most on the album, she replied:

My favorite tracks on Spiritual Experience are “Midnight Sun,” “Pure Crystal,” “Sea Princess,” “Night Zone,” … I think I’m in love with all the tracks on the CD 🙂

Valeria Nicoletta, Claudio Passavanti, and Stefano Torossi’s “Pure Crystal,” the fourth track on Spiritual Experience, is on YouTube:

Stefano Torossi recalls working on Spiritual Experience:

recent shot of Stefano Torossi (photo from http://www.globalist.it)

Passavanti, Nicoletta and I composed [the album] together; Passavanti did all the arrangements, the keyboards, the recording and the engineering; Nicoletta did the vocal part (what a voice, eh?), and Roberto Valle, an excellent guitar player and composer, was with us on two selections: “Aura” and “Dreamworld”.

“Heart And Soul,” the tenth track and one of Stefano Torossi’s finest producing efforts in the view of this author, is online:

More from the Musicians of Spiritual Experience

Each of the three musicians have worked on multiple projects together. In 2003, Claudio Passavanti released Fashionrama, an album featuring Valeria Nicoletta on vocals that was produced by Stefano Torossi, and in 2007 Valeria Nicoletta also appeared on Luca Proietti’s World Windows album, another Rai Trade CD produced by Stefano Torossi. In 2011 Nicoletta appeared with Luca Proietti and Torossi on their Deneb Records/Flippermusic’ release Vocal Emotions, in addition to several compilations by ExtraBall Records in 2013 and 2014.

Luca Proietti – World Windows (2007) Rai Trade

At this time, it seems Spiritual Experience, Fashionrama, and World Windows are all out of print, having been issued in CD exclusively. Only Luca Proietti’s “Natai e Davul” from World Windows, featuring vocalist Valeria Nicoletta and producer Stefano Torossi, is online.

Valeria Nicoletta, Luca Proietti and Stefano Torossi – Vocal Emotions (2011) Deneb Records

Vocal Emotions, however, was issued exclusively as a digital download and is currently available from both Amazon and iTunes in most markets. Six tracks from Vocal Emotions, including “Dance Tarantella,” “Ave Maria,” “Italian Lullaby,”  “Exotic Sahara,” “Celtic Melody,” and the title track, along with “Natai e Davul” are found at Valeria Nicoletta’s MySpace site.

Various Artists – Capocolonna luce dell’anima (2014) A. Cynthia Agostino

“Ave Maria,” the fourth track on Vocal Emotions by Valeria Nicoletta, Luca Proietti, and Stefano Torossi, also appears on Capocolonna luce dell’anima (2014), a compilation of traditional songs inspired by liturgical texts and traditions associated with the devotion to the Virgin Mary. Just released, the album also includes a previously unreleased Tina and Valeria Nicoletta song, “Mira il tuo popolo.”

A promotional video for Capocolonna luce dell’anima that includes Valeria Nicoletta, Luca Proietti, and Stefano Torossi’s “Ave Maria” is on YouTube:

Online EP for Spiritual Experience Plus Two Cuts on MySpace

Three tracks from Valeria Nicoletta, Claudio Passavanti, and Stefano Torossi’s Spiritual Experience including “Pure Crystal,” the title track, and “Heart And Soul,” are on YouTube:

In addition, two more tracks from Spiritual Experience, “Voice Of Sahara” and “Dreamworld,” are at Valeria Nicoletta’s MySpace site. Click HERE.

Copies of this out of print CD are sometimes available at Discogs, CDandLP.com, and Amazon USA. It also shows up on auction sites like eBay Worldwide.

a recent photo of Valeria and Tina Nicoletta (photo from valerianicoletta.it)

And one final performance by Valeria Nicoletta, her stirring interpretation of “The Passion of the Christ”: