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On The Scene

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Gianmarco Ferri

Label: GleAM Records
Released: 2024
Duration: 00:39:00
Views: 882

Tracks

Kiko's Delight; New Hope; Mirage; So Close; Unit 7; They Say It's Wonderful; The Song is You.

Personnel

Additional Personnel / Information

Marcello Allulli: tenor saxophone (4).

Album Description

"On the Scene" represents an exciting collaboration between the young and talented guitarist Gianmarco Ferri, a rising star of the Italian jazz scene, and the renowned American pianist David Kikoski, an authentic master of contemporary Jazz who has contributed significantly to the project, bringing his piano mastery and musical sensitivity to add depth and complexity to the tracks. The album also features Stefano Battaglia on double bass, Luca Santaniello on drums and Marcello Allulli on tenor saxophone on the ballad So Close. The leader selects for this session 4 original compositions and 3 reinterpretations of standards, highlighting his consolidated relationship with the jazz tradition and his look ahead with a writing with markedly postbop colors. His vision of jazz combines harmonic research, melodic originality within the bop language and a joyful rhythmic approach full of dynamism. His idea of swing, in fact, embodies the burning desire to express oneself and connect with others through the unifying power of music and movement. The album opens with Kiko's Delight, an example of bop that stands out for the organicity of its melody, played in unison by piano and guitar. The song is based on the harmony of Tadd Dameron's famous song ''Tadd's Delight'' and moves on a sustained medium swing pulsation on which the energetic improvisations of Kikoski and Ferri follow one another. This is followed by exchanges between Battaglia's double bass and Santaniello on drums before the theme returns. New Hope is another original composition, based on the groove of the famous song 'Poinciana' by Nat Simone, very famous in the version by Ahmad Jamal. The melody of "New Hope" is lively and upbeat, evoking a sense of optimism. The bridge of the song, on the other hand, is characterized by a change of atmosphere with a more bluesy quality. This is followed by Mirage, a blues with markedly modern colors and a groove in 12/8. The resulting mood is metropolitan and funkified. After the exposition of the theme, Ferri and Kikoski build their improvisations in the same mysterious and pulsating atmosphere offered by the vamp and the obbligatos, gradually preparing the ground to free their phrasing in an explosion of swing led by the rhythm section of Battaglia and Santaniello on the "four", thus providing variety and dynamism to the performance. It's the turn of So Close. After Kikoski's masterful introduction in which lyricism is combined with a wide and adventurous harmonic spectrum, the listener is transported on an emotional journey that leads to the theme, imbued with a twilight aura and exposed by the tenor saxophone of Marcello Allulli in the A and Gianmarco Ferri in the B. A theme of rare beauty that highlights the compositional maturity of the leader in spite of his young age. Unit 7, composed by renowned bassist Sam Jones, is the leader's personal homage to legendary jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery, incorporating some of his main stylistic and arrangement features. The rhythmic bounce is sparkling and flowing, alternating here and there with swinging twists and changes of mood. The improvisations of the leader, Kikoski and Battaglia flow on these tracks. They Say It's Wonderful, the famous song by Irving Berlin, is interpreted by the ensemble in an essential way, highlighting the beauty and essence of the melody itself. An opportunity to fully explore and appreciate the strength of the theme and the ability to communicate emotions without the need for additional decorative elements. The Song is You is a classic piece of the jazz repertoire that, performed in a duo with piano and guitar, acquires an extraordinary elegance and intimacy. The combination of the piano, with its harmonic and melodic range, and the guitar, with its rhythmic and improvisational versatility, offers an engaging and sophisticated interpretation. The delicacy of the harmonies and the tonal richness of the guitar blend beautifully with the harmonic richness and melodic sensitivity of the piano, creating an immersive and exciting musical experience. In this performance, the complicity and interplay between the two instruments result in a compelling and unforgettable performance, superbly celebrating the timeless charm of classic jazz.