Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Mitteleuropa Ensemble: Frammenti

99

Mitteleuropa Ensemble: Frammenti

By

Sign in to view read count
Mitteleuropa Ensemble: Frammenti
A Multicultural Surprise. My AAJ colleague Glenn Astarita forwarded this Mitteleuropa disc my way describing it as “Italian Jazz”. I have had some experience with RED records, Sergio Veschi’s Milano venture that includes documenting performing Italian Jazz musicians. With this in mind, I approached Frammenti ( Fragments ) with a somewhat pinched expectation and what I got was a musically eye-opening experience. I was expecting something mainstream and got something from the fringes.

The disc opener is a little Antony and Cleopatra with Olatz Gorrotxategi’s eerie voice sounding very North African. “Surabaya Johnny” sounds like pre-war Berlin cabaret. The remainder of the disc defies description, being a melting pot of cultures deftly blended musically. This music is like mixing hip-hip, Bluegrass, Western Swing, and Show tunes and making it all work. The musicianship is uniformly fine (or else this type of disc would never have worked— and for that matter, it might not). There is something here for all listeners to appreciate. The wisdom, challenge, and fun is finding it.

Track Listing

Wide; Surabaya Johnny; Il Paradiso Sui Tetti; Iluna Teilatutan; Start; Franziska; Carolina. (Total Playing Time 63:06).

Personnel

Olatz Gorrotxategi: Soprano Voice; Mario Fragiacomo: Tromba, flugelhorn, Luca Bonvini: Trombone, slide trumpet; Robert Favilla, Jr.: keyboards; Robert Della Grotta: Bass; Filippo Monico: Drums.

Album information

Title: Frammenti | Year Released: 1999 | Record Label: Iktius

Comments

Tags


For the Love of Jazz
Get the Jazz Near You newsletter All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who create it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

You Can Help
To expand our coverage even further and develop new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for a modest $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination will vastly improve your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.

More

Fiesta at Caroga
Afro-Caribbean Jazz Collective
Fellowship
David Gibson
Immense Blue
Olie Brice / Rachel Musson / Mark Sanders

Popular

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.