Mauro Farina

Mauro Farina was born in Brescia, a small city of about 200,000 people located between Milan and Venice in northern Italy. From an early age he showed an unconditional passion for music. By the age of six he already knew every Beatles song, and the first record he ever bought was “I Want to Hold Your Hand”.

When he turned eight his parents gifted him his first guitar, and he quickly taught himself how to play. At the age of eleven he formed his first band called ALBATROS. He was the youngest member in a lineup that included three guitarists, a pianist and a drummer. Mauro played rhythm guitar and also served as the lead vocalist.

Their repertoire consisted of Beatles covers like “Hey Jude”, “Strawberry Fields Forever” and “Get Back”, as well as songs by CCR such as “Suzie Q”. In 1969 ALBATROS became heavily influenced by the wild atmosphere of the Woodstock era music scene and began performing songs by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Santana and others. They mainly performed in the outskirts of Verona, where Mauro had moved with his family at the age of nine.

Although music was at the center of his life, Mauro continued his studies. After middle school he chose to study mathematics, and by eighteen he was attending university, pursuing mechanical engineering. Yet his greatest passion remained music, always and above everything else.

When Mauro turned 19, he felt ready for a greater musical challenge. It all began when Mauro asked Massimo “Joy”, the bassist, if he could collaborate on a new musical project, a request Joy immediately accepted with enthusiasm. Soon after, Mauro and Joy, together with other musicians from the band Albatros, founded the project that shortly thereafter would become known as CARAVAN, one of the most important Italian dance bands of the 1970s and 1980s.

The unique style and fresh energy of CARAVAN fueled a fifteen year success story. With Mauro as their frontman, the band performed countless shows throughout Italy, developing an unmatched ability to captivate audiences. In 1980 alone they played 310 shows in top Italian clubs, attracting enormous crowds eager to dance to their sound.

CARAVAN became the first Italian band to perform live versions of songs by Bobby Orlando, Sylvester, Patrick Cowley, K.C. & the Sunshine Band, Giorgio Moroder and many others. Among the musicians performing with Mauro were young artists who would later become major names in the Italian music industry, such as producers Roby Arduini (Cappella, Paul Sharada, 49ers), Mario Natale (arranger for Milva, Fiorello, Amii Stewart) and skilled musicians like G. Panariello (Ric Fellini & Family Number One).

The CARAVAN years greatly shaped Mauro’s artistic identity.

Meanwhile, Giuliano Crivellente, the group’s pianist and keyboardist, began collaborating as a session musician in various Italian recording studios. One day, the owner of a studio in Brescia asked Giuliano to bring in energetic musicians to begin a new dance-funk project. In 1975, while CARAVAN’s popularity was growing, Giuliano attended one of their concerts in a castle in the countryside near Verona. About 15,000 fans were in attendance, electrified by the opening performance: “Shine On You Crazy Diamond” by Pink Floyd. Giuliano was impressed by the band’s talent, but especially by Mauro’s voice, flexible, dynamic, and capable of moving from Led Zeppelin rock ballads to funky KC & the Sunshine Band material. After the show, Giuliano met the group and asked Mauro to record one of his tracks in the studio. That encounter marked the beginning of an extraordinary partnership. Together, Mauro and Giuliano would go on to write over 1,000 songs, produce more than 1,500 titles, and sell over 10 million albums along with several million singles sold. This marked the start of their golden era. Mauro and Giuliano began working together, recording songs composed by Giuliano and performed by Mauro as the main vocalist. These early collaborations were Italian mid-tempo pop and ballads, which soon reached important Italian labels, leading to a three-year recording contract.

(future owner of Media Records) and Giacomo Maiolini (future owner of Time Records). Everyone wanted to work with Farina & Crivellente. Between 1982 and 1985, Mauro and Giuliano collaborated with various Italian distributors and produced many upbeat tracks that filled dance floors, songs like Brand Image’s “Are You Loving?”, Lovables’ “It’s Beautiful”, Family Number One’s “Lara de Bahia”, and many more. They also wrote major dance hits for Paul Sharada, Chris Lang, Debora Haslam, Miko Mission, and others. Around this time, Mauro and Giuliano launched TIME RECORDS with Giacomo Maiolini. From 1983 to 1987, Time Records dominated the Italian dance scene, with countless hits played by DJs across the country. The number of songs they created is nearly impossible to list, but here are a few examples of their dance successes from that era: ATRIUM – “Funny Dancer”, “Doctor Jeckyll & Mr. Hyde”. ALEPH – “Fly To Me”, “Fire on the Moon”, “Big Brother”. VIRGIN – “Tell Me Why”. ALBERT ONE – “Secrets”, “In the Night”. MAX COVERI – “Run to the Sun”, “In the Night”. RIC FELLINI – “Welcome to Rimini”, “Souvenir d’Amour”. JOE YELLOW – “Love at First Sight”. …and many more.

As their workload increased, they opened a second studio. In 1985 they met DJs and producers Marco Brasciani and Paolo Gemma and formed RADIORAMA, which became one of the biggest European dance acts worldwide. Tracks like “Desire”, “Vampires”, “Aliens”, “Yeti”, “ABCD” topped the charts in countries such as Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Japan, Benelux, Scandinavia, Mexico, Hong Kong, Singapore, Canada, Thailand, Australia, and Spain. By this point, Farina & Crivellente were recognized as the kings of Italian dance music. In 1986, Mauro and Giuliano created a new label with Florian Fadinger, ASIA RECORDS. Florian was in Italy promoting the global hit “Electric Salsa” by OFF, and after meeting Mauro and Giuliano, their friendship evolved into a new artistic vision: a fresh, unique dance style influenced by Japanese culture. This led to the creation of High-Energy, a sound that would become a favorite among young listeners for decades. Songs like Ross’ “Don’t Stop” and Malcolm J. Hill’s “Take a Chance” became massive hits in Japan and across Asia. Their music exploded in popularity, with the FCF brand (Farina-Crivellente-Fadinger) appearing on merchandise, car decals, and more. Between 1986 and 1991, they sold over 8 million albums and millions of singles.

Under the name DALTON, they wrote many Italian pop songs and participated in the prestigious Sanremo Festival. Despite spending most of his time in the studio, Mauro continued to tour with CARAVAN. In 1979, he discovered the sound of two artists who deeply influenced his creativity in dance music, Bobby Orlando and Patrick Cowley. Mauro became fascinated by their powerful, hypnotic sound and listened closely to capture the energy in each track. Songs like Cowley’s “Menergy” and “Technological World”, and Orlando’s “She Has a Way” became part of CARAVAN’s live repertoire, always generating huge enthusiasm. Mauro shared these discoveries with Giuliano, who became intrigued by the keyboards, synth arrangements, and drum power. Their mutual fascination led them to create their first dance track. They booked a studio in Turin and recorded “You and Me Tonight”, the first production credited to Farina & Crivellente. The year was 1981, and soon after they founded FACTORY SOUND STUDIOS and S.A.I.F.A.M. At first, the studio was open to any producer or artist wanting to record. Giuliano handled all keyboards, Mauro programmed sequencers and electronic drums, and also provided both lead and background vocals. In 1982, they met sound engineer Sandro Oliva, forming a powerful team.

Their creative process was spontaneous: Mauro would play an arpeggiated melody, Sandro would suggest ideas, Giuliano would add keyboard layers, bass lines, and synth riffs, and the sequencers would capture everything onto the tape. During 1982, this creative flow generated melodies and songs that would later become future dance classics. They collaborated with several other producers, including Claudio Cattafesta and Gino Caria. The first production by Ken Laszlo, “Hey Hey Guy”, written by Sandro Oliva and recorded at Factory Sound Studios, became a worldwide hit with hundreds of thousands of copies sold. Mauro worked on the track as backing vocalist and sound engineer alongside Sandro, adding arrangement ideas. Giuliano played keyboards with Cattafesta, while Caria handled percussion and drum programming. A funny anecdote surrounds the famous intro, simulating a telephone conversation, which was recorded by connecting the studio phone to the reception line. Although distributors initially underestimated the track, time proved them wrong. In 1982, Mauro met Italian DJ Pier Feroldi, who soon became a close friend. Pier had a deep knowledge of international dance music, sparking a collaboration between him, Mauro, and Roby Arduini under the project HANANAS, producing a dance cover of Giorgio Moroder’s “From Here to Eternity”. The track became a hit in major Italian clubs and was licensed worldwide. This success attracted rising Italian producers such as Gianfranco Bortolotti.

Through the “That’s Eurobeat” brand, compilations will be released featuring original tracks written for Saifam by the songwriters Farina and Crivellente. The compilations, licensed for the Japanese market to the company Alfa, will become not only a sensational record success, but also a fashion and cultural phenomenon among Japanese teenagers. Over 11 million albums and 20 million singles sold in roughly six years will give Saifam a level of visibility and credibility that still endures. During this period, they collaborated with significant figures like Laurent G. Newfield, Claudio Accatino, Federico Rimonti, Alberto Bindella, and Clara Moroni, all crucial contributors to the High-Energy sound. By 1987–1988, Mauro, Giuliano, and Florian earned their first gold records; by the end of the Japanese era, they accumulated 11 gold and 3 platinum awards. They continued producing for both the Japanese market and Italian artists like Miko Mission and Styloo. Under the pseudonym Mark Farina, Mauro entered the Italian charts with “Take Your Time”, appearing on multiple TV shows. In Japan, “Boom Boom Dollars” by King Kong won the Asian Dance Music Awards, while “Tell By Your Eyes” by Dr. Zivago sold nearly 200,000 copies.

During the same period, the track “Krazy” was recorded by American artist Pitbull and released by Sony US, selling over 700,000 singles in the United States. From 2010 onward, Saifam continued to discover and launch new hip hop talents, including Gionnyscandal, Fred De Palma, Raige, and Rayden, while also beginning a significant phase of publishing acquisitions that expanded its catalog to over 58,000 works by Italian and international artists. These include Laura Pausini, Eros Ramazzotti, Francesco Gabbani, Marco Mengoni, Ermal Meta, Renato Zero, Angelo Branduardi, Ron, Tosca, Chiara Galiazzo, Modà, Ivana Spagna, Fabri Fibra, Club Dogo, Gué Pequeno, Emis Killa, Mondo Marcio, Anastasio, Boro & Mambolosco, Righeira, Pitbull, Feder, Bronski Beat, Vegas Jones, Rich the Kid, Delegation, Crystal Waters, Alex Gaudino, Cristian Marchi, Deep Swing, The Outhere Brothers, Billy Moore, and many more. Over the years, the Group has also acquired significant stakes in its partner companies Da Capo Music LLC (Washington, USA) and BRAVO Music Group (Tokyo, Japan). Saifam has signed exclusive publishing agreements with renowned songwriters such as Maurizio Fabrizio (Mia Martini, Mina, Giorgia, Eros Ramazzotti, Renato Zero, Patty Pravo, and others), Pietro Cantarelli (Ivano Fossati, Fiorella Mannoia, Ornella Vanoni, Tosca, Giorgio Gaber, Roberto Vecchioni, Samuele Bersani, Cristiano De André, Niccolò Agliardi), Luca Urbani (Bluvertigo, Alive, La Sintesi, Garbo, Fluon), Rory Di Benedetto (Marco Mengoni, Lorenzo Fragola, Lele, Zero Assoluto, Luk3), Roberto Kunstler (Sergio Cammariere, Alex Britti, Annalisa, Ornella Vanoni, Paola Turci), Umberto Smaila (Gatti di Vicolo Miracoli, Anna Oxa and author of several soundtracks), Andy Martongelli (Arthemis, David Ellefson), Massimiliano Lazzaretti (author of several soundtracks), Remo Anzovino (musician and composer, author of several soundtracks).

After six intense years, Mauro and Giuliano took a break. Florian returned to Germany, forming S.A.I.F.A.M. Musik Germany with Mauro. In 1992, Mauro focused on upgrading all studios and building new ones (Universal Studios). He also began collaborating with guitarist Fabio Turatti, who would become one of S.A.I.F.A.M.’s leading producers. Giuliano, wanting a new musical direction, moved toward children’s music and eventually left S.A.I.F.A.M. in 1998 to dedicate himself fully to his new company, Mela Music. Mauro continued expanding with new labels: 21st Century and One Way Records. Their debut release, “Forever Young” by DJ Space’s, immediately charted in Spain and was licensed in 27 countries. One Way Records launched with Den Harrow’s “Take Me,” which became a major club hit. More collaborations followed, including Rino Facchinetti (Ian Lex) with the hit “Just Over the Time.” In 1994, Mauro began working with Bronski Beat, producing new versions of “Smalltown Boy,” “Hit That Perfect Beat,” and “Tell Me Why,” before creating a full album with them, Rainbow Nation (1995). During this period, the track “What’s Up” by DJ Miko—produced entirely at Saifam—sold over one million singles worldwide, charting in the USA, Germany, Italy, and Japan. The track “Chilly Cha Cha” by Jessica Jay sold nearly two million singles.

This era was so prolific that they opened a third studio and hired two young talents, Johnny Di Martino (Johnny Mix) and Fabio Serra, who became key members of the Factory Team, managing mixing, arrangements, and production across all S.A.I.F.A.M. studios. While their main focus remained the Japanese market, Mauro also became intrigued by the emerging house music scene coming from the UK and Ibiza. He began experimenting with Italian DJs, and soon tracks like Don Pablo’s Animals’ “Ibiza” and The Corporation’s “Manila” appeared. The breakthrough came in March 1990 with “Moments in Soul” by J.T. & The Big Family, which reached the UK Top 3 and charted worldwide. Shortly after, “Venus” by Don Pablo’s Animals—a clever mix of Shocking Blue’s guitar riff, house rhythms, and James Brown samples—soared to #2 in the UK charts. By mid-1990, S.A.I.F.A.M. was dominating both UK and European charts simultaneously. More hits followed through 1990 and 1991, including “Another Day in Paradise” (SL Line), “Nothing Compares 2 U” (MXM), “Ride Like the Wind” (Blue Jam), “Foreign Affair” (J.T. & The Big Family), “Life” (Forte), “Waste Your Time” (Red Fox), and many others. Meanwhile, “Tell By Your Eyes” by Dr. Zivago became a major hit in Japan, selling over half a million copies. Between 1986 and 1991, Mauro and Giuliano wrote, produced, and supervised over 700 tracks, selling millions of records and becoming one of the most influential production teams in dance music globally.

Other singles, such as “Free” by Bacon Popper (400k sold), entered the sales charts in France and Scandinavia. Through the mid-’90s, Mauro produced and remixed countless international artists, keeping many tracks at the top of Italian and European charts. By the late ’90s, S.A.I.F.A.M. was releasing more than 400 tracks and 40 compilations per year, selling millions of units and earning recognition as one of the world’s strongest independent dance labels.

From 2000 to 2005, Saifam entered a major scouting phase, launching some of the most influential underground Italian hip hop artists who would later become multi-platinum stars. During this period, the label produced and distributed the early releases of Fabri Fibra, the first two Club Dogo albums, the debut project of Mondo Marcio, an album by Nesli, and three albums by Bassi Maestro. It also worked with notable names such as Amir, Don Joe, and others, establishing itself as the leading reference point for Italian hip hop and anticipating what would soon evolve into a nationwide cultural movement. Between 2006 and 2009, Saifam returned to dance music, producing acts like Desaparecidos, Fargetta, and Lanfranchi & Marchesini. Seven of its releases entered the Top 10 of the French sales charts in collaboration with Universal France.

The Group supplies music content to major global companies in the fitness and workout industry, creating brands such as Workout Music Tv, Energy 4 Fitness, and New Workout Order, through which it produces and distributes content worldwide. Between 2018 and 2024, the label received more than 90 gold records and over 160 platinum and multi-platinum awards. Since 2019 the Group has also included the booking agency SAIFAM OFF, founded by Simone Farina, the current CEO of Saifam. In 2022, Saifam was recognized as the company with the highest number of accrued rights at JASRAC (Japanese Society for Rights of Authors, Composers and Publishers) among all international publishing entities operating in Japan. This achievement highlights the impact and strength of the Saifam catalog within the Japanese market. The company also received the prestigious Foreign Work Award at the 2020 JASRAC Awards with the track “U.S.A.” by the artist DA PUMP, which ranked first in the annual chart of foreign works with the highest collected royalties and was featured in numerous major national advertising campaigns. Also in 2022, The Saifam Group announced the launch of MUSIC NOW!, a new division dedicated to the revitalization of physical music formats, with the goal of preserving a cultural and not only musical heritage that risked disappearing with the rise of digital-only distribution. Through MUSIC NOW!, musical works that had long been absent from the traditional market were reissued in limited editions with carefully curated packaging. Over time, more than 300 albums were reissued in collaboration with Warner Music Italy, Sony Music Italy, Sony Music Publishing, BMG, and many other major industry partners.