Dodicilune Records

Feb 8 2018

Probably a good idea to check out these two releases from Angelo Mastronardi

 

One of the nice things about artists and labels discovering the Bandcamp site is the opportunity to revisit some of the older albums in a musician’s discography as they upload them at the same time as a recording of a more recent vintage.  Case in point:  Angelo Mastronardi.

The pianist released a new album in 2017 called New Things, Same Words.  It’s a solid straight-ahead session, and sounds like it could source from NYC as easily as the pianist’s Gioia del Colle, Italy home turf.  It’s got a free-flowing lyricism that displays plenty of activity, but keeps it tightly focused… like a wildly fluttering butterfly that doesn’t roam outside a square foot of sky.  The rhythm section of double bassist Stefano Rielli and drummer Alex Semprevivo develop a conversant chatter that stays light on its feet, enhancing the buoyant melodicism from Mastronardi and saxophonist Emanuele Coluccia.  The upbeat pieces kick up a little fire but nothing that could burn, and while they’re plenty enjoyable, it’s when the quartet slows down and makes a melody smoulder with heavy emotion that the album shines strongest.

Your album personnel:  Angelo Mastronardi (piano, Fender Rhodes), Emanuele Coluccia (tenor and soprano saxophones), Stefano Rielli (double bass) and Alex Semprevivo (drums).

Released on Gleam Records.  Listen to more of the album on the artist’s Bandcamp page.

Available at:  Bandcamp | Amazon | eMusic

 

It’s a different kind of sound on Mastronardi’s 2014 recording, Like at the Beginning.  Most noticeable is how the atmosphere changes when it’s a trio setting, and Mastronardi is the primary conductor of the melodic electricity.  This album is far snappier than its 2017 counterpart, and its volatile energy is directed laterally far more than cyclically.  It, too, could easily be identified as something coming from NYC as Italy.  This quality is somewhat surprising considering this album was released on Dodicilune Records, a label that tends to release music that takes on folk and chamber characteristics reflective of the Mediterranean scenes.  With double bassist Michele Maggi and drummer Walter Forestiere rounding out the trio, sometimes they dig into a groove and sometimes they drift into a ballad, but for the most part, this is music that sticks to a sunny tone and chipper disposition

Your album personnel:  Angelo Mastronardi (piano), Michele Maggi (double bass) and Walter Forestiere (drums, percussion).

Released on Dodicilune Records.  Listen to more of the album on the artist’s Bandcamp page.

Available at:  Bandcamp | Amazon | eMusic

By • Jazz Recommendations - 2014 Releases, Jazz Recommendations - 2017 releases • 0 • Tags: , , ,

Aug 27 2017

Your Sunday Morning Jazz Album: Rituali – “Rituali”

 

Sunday morning is when the serenity comes down.  Sunday morning is the cocoon from the heavy exhaustion of too much Saturday night fun.  Sunday morning is when the city agrees to use its inside voice.  Sunday morning is when a hush settles in over the land.  It is a time for sitting still and listening to quiet music and silently praying the aspirin and coffee do something to stop your head from exploding.  Drama and stress are strictly forbidden on Sunday morning.

Your Sunday Morning Jazz Album is just for you, for times just like these.  If you possess the freakish compulsion to get-up-and-go when the clock strikes Sunday morning, this music is not for you.  Go and listen to a Spotify EDM playlist or something.  But whatever you decide, just do it quietly and far away from those of us who appreciate the true solemn nature of a Sunday morning.

Hoo boy, does this music instill a calming effect upon the room.  The quartet Rituali doesn’t appear to have in mind the goal of constructing a cocoon of tranquility, but, damn, if that isn’t what they do.  Clarinetist Francesco Ganassin, pianist Stefano Battaglia, bassist Andrea Lamacchia and percussionist Andrea Ruggeri find a sweet spot where modern jazz, Mediterranean folk and classical musics exist in a state of equanimity, and the result is pure serenity.

Yes, they raise the heat a bit on “Boes e Meres de Ules” and “Negakok” has a quirky personality, but all of this stays well in line with the peaceful atmosphere.  That atmosphere is best exemplified by the “Canzone per Pierrot (che sorride).”  It has a melody that could rest upon the surface of a cloud, and yet the lively chatter of drums and percussion keep things animated just enough to keep the music from compelling the eyes to grow heavy and the introspection from getting too deep.  Just a lovely recording.

You need this album today, right now.

  • Artist-Title:  Rituali – Rituali
  • Personnel:  Francesco Ganassin (clarinets, gralla, ciaramella, ocarina), Stefano Battaglia (piano, percussion), Andrea Lamacchia (double bass) and Andrea Ruggeri (drums, percussion, objects).
  • Proper Use:  1) Staring vacantly into space and imagining all the seaside villages you could visit on your next vacation, 2)  Keeping perfectly still so as not to disturb the cat(s) napping at your side, or 3) Catching up on all of those cool-looking articles you bookmarked, and spend the morning quietly reading.

Released in 2009 on Dodicilune Records.

Listen to more of the music on the artist’s Youtube page.  Also, Bandcamp.

Music from Sienna, Italy.

Available at:  Amazon | eMusic

By • Jazz Recommendations, Jazz Recommendations - 2009 Releases • 1 • Tags: , , ,