Proclama: songwriting as the starting point
The core of Giardina’s original artistic work is Proclama, a project formed in Turin around the end of the 2000s and established in its recording form from 2010. Giardina is the band’s singer, guitarist and principal songwriter. In 2015 Rockol described him succinctly as the band’s “voice, guitar and pen”.[3]
The self-titled debut album Proclama was released in 2011. It was followed by live activity across several Italian regions and a performance in St Petersburg in November 2011, later recorded in the band’s label biographies.[1][2]
A meeting with Giulio Tedeschi and Toast Records, one of Turin’s historic independent labels, led in 2012 to the release of the double single La commedia della vita / Sei deluso. From this point Proclama moved more consistently through the Italian independent festival and professional network.[1][2]
Rock Targato Italia, Wanted Primo Maggio and Varigotti
In 2013 Proclama completed the full Piedmont route of the 25th edition of Rock Targato Italia and finished second in the Piedmont–Aosta Valley regional final on 1 June at Turin’s Magazzino di Gilgamesh, on a bill that also included Kobe and Metaphora. Official organiser emails document the selection rounds, semi-final and final; the second-place result is also documented by the physical award preserved by Giardina.[4]
The context matters: founded in 1986, Rock Targato Italia is one of Italy’s longest-running independent music competitions. Its history includes Timoria, Carmen Consoli, Subsonica and Marlene Kuntz; the latter’s official biography records that reaching the competition final brought them to the attention of Gianni Maroccolo.[4]
That same year Proclama appeared at Wanted Primo Maggio and was selected among the ten finalists of the Varigotti Festival – National Award for Emerging Songwriting, strengthening the band’s presence beyond Turin.[1]
Promozione Artistica Eventi and Lanterne Rock
Alongside his work as a musician, a second dimension began to take shape. Giardina founded the cultural association Promozione Artistica Eventi and in 2013 created Lanterne Rock – National Songwriting Award of Vische and Canavese, serving as its creator and artistic director.[5]
The first edition brought together artists from different parts of Italy, with guests including Divina, Yavanna, Proclama, Subà, Assist, Peanuts ’78 and Closure. The award was won by La Stanza di Greta, a Turin band that would later receive the 2017 Targa Tenco for Best Debut Album with Creature selvagge.[6]
In 2014 Lanterne Rock returned for its second edition, with Giubbonsky and Yo Yo Mundi among the main guests. Yo Yo Mundi belong to the history of Italian alternative music and to the scene linked to Baracca & Burattini and the Consorzio Produttori Indipendenti (C.P.I.), one of the key hubs of 1990s Italian rock.[5][7]
In 2015 the third edition featured Perturbazione as special guests. Over three editions, the festival became part of the wider independent-festival network connected to MEI and the Carovana dei Festival.[8]
Sanremo Promo Awards national final
In March 2014 Giardina entered the Sanremo Promo Awards in the original-song category. On 22 March he was called to the Teatro Città della Notte in Augusta, Sicily, for the Centre–South national selection and passed the round.
On 24 March an official letter signed by artistic director M° Ermanno Croce confirmed his direct admission to the national final in Sanremo, scheduled for 27–29 May 2014 within the Gran Galà del Festival degli Autori, with the event held at the Teatro del Casinò di Sanremo. Giardina was one of five nominees in his category.[9]
This was not the Festival della Canzone Italiana itself, but an independent competition staged in Sanremo. The episode is documented by the complete official correspondence preserved in Giardina’s archive.
MEI, Carovana dei Festival and network building
During the same period Giardina’s relationship with MEI – Meeting degli Indipendenti in Faenza became more established. Proclama appears among the live acts in the 2014 programme, while Giardina was also in direct contact with the organisation as the person responsible for Lanterne Rock, already part of the festival network.[10]
Promozione Artistica Eventi then joined the Carovana dei Festival, alongside events operating mainly across Piedmont, Liguria and Emilia-Romagna. The 2015 MEI programme presented Lanterne Rock together with Festival delle Periferie, Lilith Festival, Orzorock, Varigotti Festival and Liguria Indies Festival.[11]
Archive correspondence shows that Giardina’s role was operational rather than symbolic: coordination, relationships with Materiali Musicali and MEI, reporting, mediation between associations, artist selection and programme building.[12]
In 2016 this experience also flowed into Castelrock, a networked programme comprising 28 events across Liguria, Piedmont, Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna. A particularly clear example is the Ventimiglia Indies Festival on 13 August 2016, featuring Frankie hi-nrg mc, Yo Yo Mundi, La Scapigliatura, I’m Not a Blonde, Popforzombie, Morrywood and La Malora. Organisational emails show Giardina working on running order, soundchecks and artist relations; the archive also includes the Yo Yo Mundi agreement signed by him on behalf of Promozione Artistica Eventi.[12][13]
“Instabile”, Abbey Road and Pistoia Blues
In 2015 Proclama released “Instabile”, written by Giorgio Giardina. Recorded in Turin, the track was mastered at Abbey Road Studios in London by Sean Magee and selected for the Pistoia Blues Next Generation project.[3]
On 15 July 2015 Proclama performed on the main stage of the Pistoia Blues Festival on Passenger’s night, with Stu Larsen also on the bill. The 2015 edition also featured Mumford & Sons, Counting Crows, Hozier, Dream Theater, Santana and Sting.[14]
Across the same period Proclama appeared in festival line-ups with artists including Morgan, Alberto Fortis, Marina Rei, Perturbazione, Statuto and Cristiano Godano, and later Afterhours, Teatro degli Orrori, Lacuna Coil and Rezophonic. These were not all direct collaborations: some were support slots, others shared festival bills. The continuity of those contexts is the more accurate measure of the band’s reach.[2][15]
“La mia migliore utopia” and Classic Rock Italia
In 2016 Proclama released its second album, La mia migliore utopia, through VREC Music Label with Audioglobe distribution. The line-up featured Giorgio Giardina on vocals and guitar, Orlando Barbuto on bass and backing vocals, and Elvis D’Elia on drums and sequencer; the songs are credited to Giardina.[15]
The album includes Instabile, America and Vanità; Dentro un attimo features Valeria Vaglio, who had previously competed at the 2008 Sanremo Festival.
In 2017 Proclama won the Classic Rock Italia contest. A direct communication from Sprea’s editorial team records first place with 8,617 votes, followed by a full-page interview in issue 57 of the magazine and online through Stone Music.[16]
The Cranberries repertoire and European live work
From 2018 Giardina opened a second artistic path as guitarist in Electric Blue, a project dedicated to the music of The Cranberries, alongside drummer Elvis D’Elia. Over time the work increasingly focused on arrangements, guitar sound design and reinterpretation, with live activity in Italy and abroad, including Ireland, Northern Ireland, the United Kingdom and Switzerland.[17]
That cycle ended in 2026 with the launch of Electric Blue Experience – The Cranberries Reimagined, featuring Michela Gallia, Orlando Barbuto, Elvis D’Elia and Giorgio Giardina. The project keeps The Cranberries’ repertoire at its centre while developing a more personal musical reading and new arrangements.[17]
Proclama returns with “Geografia Umana”
At the same time, original songwriting returned to the foreground. In 2026 Proclama resumed its recording activity with Giorgio Giardina, Orlando Barbuto and Elvis D’Elia.
The result is the band’s completed third album, Geografia Umana. “Ti resto addosso”, scheduled for release on 25 September 2026, is the first official single from the record and opens a new chapter for the band.[18]
Circuiti Umani: production, development and international relationships
In 2026 many of the experiences accumulated over the previous years converged in Circuiti Umani, a Turin-based recording, production and artist-development structure. Giardina is its founding member and artistic producer. Its work spans pre-production, arrangement, recording, mixing, mastering, musician selection and overall project development.[19]
Circuiti Umani is also being developed as a structure able to build professional relationships and move projects beyond the studio. In 2026 it launched Circuiti Umani Lab, developed a session-musician network and received, through VREC, the vinyl mastering work for a new record by Giulio Casale.[19]
Within the same structure, the 2027 Irish tour for Electric Blue Experience was organised: six dates in Ireland around the St Patrick’s period, built through direct relationships with local venues and operators. The project brings together booking, production, logistics and international development.[19]
In the same year Circuiti Umani became an official member of the Italian Irish Chamber of Commerce, joining a professional network between Italy and Ireland. It is not presented as an artistic award; its relevance is strategic, supporting the development of long-term relationships and opportunities in Ireland.[19]
A long, cross-disciplinary presence in Italian independent music
Seen as a whole, Giorgio Giardina’s path is difficult to reduce to a single title such as singer, guitarist or producer. He has been the songwriter and frontman of an original project, artistic director of a national award, festival promoter and organiser, an active participant in Italy’s independent music network, a musician on national and international stages and, more recently, a producer and builder of new projects.
It is not a career defined by a single breakthrough. It is a long trajectory documented by records, festivals, labels, music press, institutional archives and professional relationships.
Write a song. Build a sound around it. Find the people who can bring it to life. Take it to a stage. And, when the stage does not exist yet, try to build that too.