Alfredo Fiorito is an Argentinian DJ. He has been credited as the "Father of the

Balearic beat Balearic beat, also known as Balearic house, Balearic, Ibiza house or Ibizan chillout, is an eclectic blend of DJ-led dance music that emerged in the mid-1980s. It later became the name of a more specific style of electronic dance music that wa ...

". After emigrating to Spain and arriving on the Balearic island of

Ibiza Ibiza (natively and officially in ca, Eivissa, ) is a Spanish island in the Mediterranean Sea off the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula. It is from the city of Valencia. It is the third largest of the Balearic Islands, in Spain. Its la ...

in September 1976, Alfredo became a DJ at

Amnesia Amnesia is a deficit in memory caused by brain damage or disease,Gazzaniga, M., Ivry, R., & Mangun, G. (2009) Cognitive Neuroscience: The biology of the mind. New York: W.W. Norton & Company. but it can also be caused temporarily by the use ...

, where his eclectic DJ style had a major influence on dance music's explosion on the island and beyond in the late 1980s.

Early life

Fiorito was born in the city of

Rosario Rosario () is the largest city in the central Argentine province of Santa Fe. The city is located northwest of Buenos Aires, on the west bank of the Paraná River. Rosario is the third-most populous city in the country, and is also the most p ...

in the

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions out ...

of Santa Fe,

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest ...

. His early working life was focused on training to become a

journalist A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalis ...

, and eventually he worked as a music critic on a newspaper. In 1976, at the age of 23, he emigrated to mainland Spain. After a short period he relocated to Ibiza.

Ibiza

Fiorito took various jobs following his arrival on Ibiza, including candlemaker, delivery driver and fashion designer. He also worked as a barman in a popular bar near the harbour in Ibiza Town called Be Bop. The bar was equipped with a couple of turntables and a mixer, and in 1982 Alfredo began to DJ.

Amnesia Amnesia is a deficit in memory caused by brain damage or disease,Gazzaniga, M., Ivry, R., & Mangun, G. (2009) Cognitive Neuroscience: The biology of the mind. New York: W.W. Norton & Company. but it can also be caused temporarily by the use ...

While Alfredo was building a reputation at Be Bop he was asked to DJ for a party at the outdoor terrace club called Amnesia in the nearby village of San Rafael. During this time Amnesia was regarded as the most underground venue on the island. Alfredo's first appearance at the club was in 1983 at a private party, and at first his sets, an eclectic mix of house, disco and pop, were not well received. Nevertheless, Alfredo persisted and in the next year he began to draw crowds, eventually leading to a six-year residency at the club. Gradually, Ibiza's fashionable crowds began to relocate to Amnesia from the neighboring Ku-club (now called Privilege).

Influence

Alfredo is regarded as having a significant influence on dance music's explosion on the island of Ibiza and the wider world.

The UK scene

In 1987The White Island, The Colourful History of the Original Fantasy Island, Ibiza. Aurthur: Stephen Armstrong. Published:Corgi. four British DJs attended Amnesia. The group was made up of Danny Rampling,

Paul Oakenfold Paul Mark Oakenfold (born 30 August 1963), formerly known mononymously as Oakenfold, is an English record producer, remixer and trance DJ. He has provided over 100 remixes for over 100 artists including U2, Moby, Madonna, Britney Spears, Mas ...

Nicky Holloway Nicky Holloway (born 12 June 1963) is an English DJ and record producer, who rose to fame in the 1980s and 1990s, and has been called "a prototype of the superstar DJ". Biography Nicholas Holloway was born in Isleworth, London. He began play ...

and Johnny Walker. At the club, the group were introduced to the unique eclectic style of Alfredo's sets, which included pop, soul, funk, jazz and other sounds along with emerging

house music House is a music genre characterized by a repetitive Four on the floor (music), four-on-the-floor beat and a typical tempo of 120 beats per minute. It was created by Disc jockey, DJs and music producers from Chicago metropolitan area, Chicago' ...

then being exported from the USA. They also discovered the music's powerful synergy with the drug

MDMA 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), commonly seen in tablet form (ecstasy) and crystal form (molly or mandy), is a potent empathogen–entactogen with stimulant properties primarily used for recreational purposes. The desire ...

, which reduced inhibitions and contributed to a sense of oneness on the dancefloor. The friends returned to England and set about recreating their experience and the sounds that Alfredo had introduced to them. Danny Rampling set up what is regarded as the UK's first Balearic

rave A rave (from the verb: '' to rave'') is a dance party at a warehouse, club, or other public or private venue, typically featuring performances by DJs playing electronic dance music. The style is most associated with the early 1990s dance mu ...

, a clubnight called

Shoom Shoom was a weekly all-nighter dance music event held at four nightclubs in London, England, between September 1987 and early 1990. It is widely credited with initiating the acid house movement in the UK. Shoom was founded by Danny Rampling, w ...

, which took place in a disused fitness centre in

Southwark Southwark ( ) is a district of Central London situated on the south bank of the River Thames, forming the north-western part of the wider modern London Borough of Southwark. The district, which is the oldest part of South London, developed ...

. Oakenfold hosted an "Ibiza Reunion" party which evolved into one of the UK's major acid house nights, Spectrum'', at ''

Heaven Heaven or the heavens, is a common religious cosmological or transcendent supernatural place where beings such as deities, angels, souls, saints, or venerated ancestors are said to originate, be enthroned, or reside. According to the belie ...

Charing Cross Charing Cross ( ) is a junction in Westminster, London, England, where six routes meet. Clockwise from north these are: the east side of Trafalgar Square leading to St Martin's Place and then Charing Cross Road; the Strand leading to the City ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fiorito, Alfredo People from Ibiza Balearic music 1953 births Living people Club DJs Argentine DJs 20th-century Argentine musicians 21st-century Argentine musicians Electronic dance music DJs