Àltera - Improvised Music Encounters

A spark for Rome's improvisational scene

Àltera - Improvised Music Encounters is the monthly series that has been bringing radical improvisation back to the center of Roman musical life since 2023. The initiative was born from the collective of the same name, which chose the ARCI Fanfulla 5/a club in the Pigneto district to «reconnect the threads of the Roman scene linked to improvisational practices» after years of stagnation. The first event was held on October 18, 2023, and since then, the series has become a reference point for those in the Municipality of Rome and throughout the Lazio region who follow experimental jazz, electro-acoustic music, and sound experimentation.

The format: three thirty-minute sets

Each evening follows a precise and stimulating formula: three live sets of about thirty minutes each, in which a musician «invites» colleagues from different backgrounds and generations to build a common language in real time, based on mutual listening and radical improvisation. Jazz, electro-acoustic music, contemporary music, and experimentation are free to interact without scripts or hierarchies. At the end of the live performances, the evening continues with a DJ set that turns the club into a nighttime neighborhood hangout.

The musicians: generations in dialogue

The Àltera stage has hosted some of the most significant names in Italian improvisation: from trombonist Giancarlo Schiaffini, a historic protagonist of the avant-garde, to Marco Colonna (bass clarinet), Luca Venitucci (accordion), Gianni Trovalusci (flutes), Giacomo Ancillotto (guitar), Francesco Diodati, Dan Kinzelman, and Eugenio Colombo, alongside emerging voices of the capital's electronic and experimental scene. The series' encounters have also led to recordings, such as the live album by the trio ThreeGoria (Eugenio Renzetti, Daniele Fiaschi, Pino Pecorelli), released in 2026.

Fanfulla 5/a, the alternative heart of Pigneto

The home of the series is Fanfulla 5/a, a historic ARCI club on Via Fanfulla da Lodi and one of the most vibrant venues for independent music in Rome. Located in Pigneto, a district that symbolizes the popular and creative side of Rome between Via Prenestina and Via Casilina, the club hosts concerts, film screenings, and listening sessions every week. Admission to events is reserved for members with an ARCI card, which can also be purchased online.

A monthly appointment in the capital

With its monthly schedule—usually on a Wednesday evening starting at 10:00 PM—Àltera has carved out a unique role in the musical landscape of the Metropolitan City of Rome: not just a simple concert series, but a space for creative collision where the audience witnesses the birth of music at the very moment it is invented. A precious opportunity to discover the most experimental side of the Lazio music scene in an informal and welcoming setting.