Daniele Carbonera

Daniele Carbonera was the drummer of Rhapsody's original line-up, present on the albums that founded Italian symphonic power metal. He was on Legendary Tales (1997) and Symphony of Enchanted Lands (1998), the two records on which Luca Turilli and Alex Staropoli established the formula the band would practise for decades: power metal written as a film score, with orchestra, choir and a continuous epic fantasy narrative. His function on those records is to provide the ground for a construction that did not yet exist. No one had tried to combine power metal speed with symphonic arrangements at that scale, and the drums had to hold constant double kick beneath orchestral layers without the result turning into noise — a new technical problem, with no earlier repertoire for reference. He left the band at the start of the 2000s, replaced by Alex Holzwarth. His later path is thinly documented, a common situation among musicians from the founding line-ups of bands that gained prominence after their departure.