Jazz Articles about Benoit Delbecq

About Benoit Delbecq

Album Review

Did the quartet Weave4 reach back 700 years with an eraser and a comma to reimagine Dante Alighieri's famous words: “Midway upon the journey of our life, I found myself within a forest dark, for the straightforward pathway had been lost?" Well, not exactly. This French-Italian collective of pianist Benoit Delbecq, drummer Steve Arguelles, guitarist Francesco Diodati and Francesco Bigoni on tenor saxophone and clarinet follows up its self-titled album, Weave4 (Parco Della Musica Records, 2023), with 15 ...

Album Review

Steve Argüelles, Francesco Bigoni, Benoit Delbecq, Francesco Diodati: Weave4

Read "Weave4" reviewed by Neri Pollastri

by Neri Pollastri
January 8, 2024

È piuttosto singolare la musica di questo Weave4 (Parco della Musica Records): aperta fino ad apparir sfrangiata, eppure con un andamento narrativo; astratta e d'ispirazione contemporanea, ma al tempo stesso con un suo palese gusto melodico; con un cuore acustico, avvolto però in un alone elettronico; dubbiosa ed esitante nelle direzioni da prendere, ma ciononostante coerente e mai confusa. Registrata nell'ottobre del 2021 dopo una residenza di due settimane a Parigi, vede protagonisti Francesco Bigoni, sax tenore e ...

Album Review

Illegal Crowns: Unclosing

Read "Unclosing" reviewed by John Sharpe

by John Sharpe
August 25, 2023

When a band of four leaders in their own right still exists over ten years after its inception, then something worthwhile is afoot. Illegal Crowns comprises the familiar American triumvirate of guitarist Mary Halvorson, cornetist Taylor Ho Bynum and drummer Tomas Fujiwara, who first crossed paths with French pianist Benoît Delbecq in 2012. Their third album Unclosing follows on from an eponymous debut (Rogue Art 2016) and the sophomore No-Nosed Puppet (Rogue Art , 2020). An accomplished blend of accessibility ...

Album Review

Benoît Delbecq 4: Gentle Ghosts

Read "Gentle Ghosts" reviewed by Alberto Bazzurro

by Alberto Bazzurro
March 8, 2022

Quando ci capita di incontrare, discograficamente parlando, il pianista francese Benoît Delbecq, cinquantasei anni il prossimo giugno, non rimaniamo mai delusi, e questo suo ultimo lavoro, inciso a Parigi nel settembre 2019, non fa eccezione. Vi è all'opera il suo oliatissimo, efficientissimo quartetto, cui il tenore di Mark Turner dà la sua classica impronta, diafana, sorniona, vigorosamente pensosa (un contrasto in termini? e perché mai?), cui il parterre che lo affianca, anche grazie alla puntualità strutturale di ...

Radio & Podcasts

Benoît Delbecq, Charles Mingus, Danilo Gallo, Tom Rainey & More New Releases

by Ludovico Granvassu
July 24, 2021

In this installment of Mondo Jazz we check out the latest releases by prolific French pianist Benoit Delbecq, the expanded version of Charles Mingus' 1974 legendary concert at Carnegie Hall, the textural work of Waxwing and the trio of Thomas Strønen, Ayumi Tanaka, Marthe Lea, and a couple of albums that may end up very high on the best of 2021 lists: the latest releases by Danilo Gallo and Tom Rainey.Happy listening!Playlist Ben Allison “Mondo Jazz ...

Album Review

Benoit Delbecq: The Weight of Light

Read "The Weight of Light" reviewed by Jerome Wilson

by Jerome Wilson
March 22, 2021

The concept of light having weight may seem unusual but in listening to this solo set by pianist Benoit Delbecq, the idea starts to make sense. His style of playing mixes feathery improvisations with clanking rhythms that bring a feeling of mass and density to his work. Delbecq uses a lot of prepared piano techniques and has mastered them to the point where he can mold clusters of dampened, thudding notes into a rhythm track that supports his ...

Album Review

Benoit Delbecq: The Weight of Light

Read "The Weight of Light" reviewed by John Sharpe

by John Sharpe
February 28, 2021

French pianist Benoit Delbecq has become one of the leading exponents of the John Cage-inspired school of prepared piano in the jazz and improvised music arena. So much so that Canadian pianist Kris Davis received a grant to study extended piano techniques with him early in her career, and has since performed with him in duet. No surprise then to find Delbecq's solo recital The Weight Of Light appearing on Davis' Pyroclastic imprint. He's no stranger to the ...