Gary Green and friends, rehearsal - September 13, 2009 - © Robert Dansereau
Mystery was formed in 1986 by Michel St-Père in the Montreal region. Originally created as a studio project, it would take nearly four years before a stable line-up took form. 1996 saw the release of Theatre of the Mind on St-Père's fledgling Unicorn label, created to promote the music of Mystery. Keyboardist Benoît Dupuis left after this release. Destiny? followed in 1998, a more progressive release that resulted in the singer leaving. Needing a sufficiently talented replacement, their first choice was Benoît David, who was in a Yes tribute band. David was auditioned and agreed to join the group, and that line-up recorded At the Dawn of a new Millennium, released in 2000. 
Incubus was part of the first wave of Quebec progressive rock, originally active between 1970 and 1974. Although influenced by groups such as ELP, King Crimson and Procol Harum, they preferred from the beginning to compose their own material. Their sound was probably most akin to classically-influenced keyboard-led groups such as ELP, Le Orme or Trace. Active around the same time as Maneige, Nécéssité and Contraction, they played out quite a bit, including shows with groups such as Mashmakhan, Offenbach, April Wine and Souls of Inspyration, and many Quebec prog fans remember them to this day. 
After releasing several beat and psych singles, the classic trio formation of Aldo Tagliapietra, Michi dei Rossi, and Toni Pagliuca was in place by 1970. This formation released four canonical Italian prog releases during this time, Collage, Uomo di Pezza, Felona e Sorona, and finally Contrappunti. Like many of the more popular Italian groups, Le Orme tried their hand with an English release, with Felona & Sorona coming out on Charisma with translated lyrics by Peter Hammill. Due to the instrumental configuration of keyboards, bass, and drums, and with a very classical sound, it is easy to compare this period to Emerson, Lake & Palmer, without the maudlin stabs at honky tonk and the like.
Magenta was formed in 2001 by ex-Cyan member Rob Reed. Debut album Revolutions was a mixture of Yes, Genesis, and Renaissance highlighted by the vocals of Christina Booth, a former collaborator with the group Trippa who had also guested with Cyan. The success of this album led to the formation of a live band to perform it, and 2004 saw the release of their first full-band album, Seven. With a concept based on the seven deadly sins, Seven was a large leap forward that firmly established Magenta at the forefront of the modern British symphonic prog movement. 2006 saw the release of Home, a concept album with some shorter pieces that combined the established style of the band with a progressive pop influence that Reed has applied in other projects. Regular live performances and festival appearances at Baja Prog, Rosfest, and NEARfest has kept the group tight and their reputation growing. 
Rouge Ciel released their first, self-titled album in 2001. Members Guido del Fabbro and Némo Venba had previously been in avant-garde ensemble La Fanfare Pourpour, and together with Antonin Provost and Simon Lapointe created an instrumental work that reviewers compared to Maneige, Conventum, Art Zoyd, and Miriodor. And yet by being compared to such different groups the real message was, here is something new, and deserving of attention. 2005's Veuillez Procéder is more urgent and less gentle, amping up the intensity, more wild, and more modern. Both releases are well appreciated by collectors of avant-progressive rock and musique actuelle.
The best things in life come to those who wait, a saying well known to fans of Italian four-piece DFA. Before 2008's #4, their last studio album was 1999's Duty Free Area. Simply put, they are one of the best groups in the world in the style of symphonic fusion, combining incredible technical virtuosity with a gift for memorable, dynamic melodies. With the #1 album on the Gagliarchives for eleven straight weeks following its release, DFA is "one of the best of the new breed" (All About Jazz), and #4 is "a worthy successor to The Rotter's Club" (Billboard.com) and "an unmitigated success" (Aymeric Leroy). And while fans of Canterbury music might see DFA as the reincarnation of National Health, they are undeniably an Italian prog group and reminiscent of some of the great jazz rock groups from that country such as Arti e Mestieri and middle-period PFM.©2009 Robert Dansereau - ProgresSon Music Inc. All Rights Reserved.