Jazz Articles about Antonio Ciacca

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Antonio Ciacca: Hollis Avenue

by Jim Santella
December 1, 1999

Italian pianist Antonio Ciacca’s modern mainstream quartet session breathes dramatic fire and still contains the necessary dollop of lyrical charm. Thirty years old, favoring Thelonious Monk’s compositional spontaneity, and aware of the need for balance in one’s work, Ciacca leads two different quartets through several standards and a few originals. Young lions all, the artists dish out tributes to Monk, Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn while applying fresh ideas throughout.

The album’s title pays homage to Jaki Byard. The pianist, ...