Paolo Botti Quintet: Leggende Metropolitane

Glenn Astarita

Senior Contributor since 1997

Longtime contributor to AAJ and Downbeat, Jazz Review, EjazzNews, Radio DirectX.

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Published: December 1, 2000

Modern jazz viola performer Paolo Botti brings more good news from Italy with this thoroughly intriguing set titled, Leggende Metropolitane. Here, the Paolo Botti Quintet explores free-bop based themes in concert with pensive interludes and the leader’s multifarious and somewhat penetrating mode of execution on pieces such as “Isola Pedonale” and others. However, “Ora Di Punta” boasts a burgeoning 4/4 pulse in support of soprano saxophonist Alessandro Bosetti’s angular and fleeting lines, whereas Botti exhibits an expansive comprehension of the jazz idiom as he comps and provides accenting statements sans a pianist in the group. Basically, Botti’s multitasking approach and fervent bowing augments the underlying momentum for the lead soloists.

Throughout this multicolored and often lilting journey, the band displays a bold demeanor amid a heavyweight punch as they also employ gradual shifts in pulse, steady swing vamps and linear motifs all with grace and flair. Yet on the final piece, “Tolleranza Zero”, the musicians engage in a bit of free-jazz style impish mayhem, thanks to sparkling improvisation and odd-metered time signatures.

In some respects, the Italian jazz scene has been undermined here in the States due to lack of press, exposure and/or due to financial considerations. Otherwise, many of these recordings are available through noteworthy distributors such as Cadence North Country and a few others. Therefore, there is a wealth of great material that deserves widespread attention, as Botti and his compatriots, have perhaps accelerated a jazz movement, that consistently surges onward with no looking back.

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Track Listing: 1) Isola Pedonale 2) Odd Works 3) Lenor 4) A Mostar 5) Ora Di Punta 6) Mezze Stagioni 7) Nuove Poverta 8) Tolleranza Zero

Personnel: Paolo Botti; viola: Alessandro Bosetti; soprano sax: Marina Ciccarelli; trombone: Tito Mangialajo Rantzer; double-bass: Filippo Monico; drums

Record Label: Caligola Records
Style: Modern Jazz