DIARY
19feb08 A couple of intense weeks, waiting for music and ciclyng to really hit again. As I mentioned down below I took off with a plane to Germany and visited grandmother Elfriede who
just turned 93. It's a long way, and not totally cheap, but absolutely worth it, since Omi gave me a lot of time and attention during her tough
life. A great woman. Hey, she's on my photo page! Then a week back in my hometown and off again with Francesca to Assisi. I would have never
thought of going to this area of Umbria on my own, but am so happy my girl wanted to go back there because it is really (and since 800 years) a
unique place, one of the selected christian-catholic pilgrimage sites in the world. You can feel and breathe Francesco and Chiara. Fantastic..
This week I'll go back to music. Slow rehearsal of my 80s and 90s instrumentals are coming along. Thursday we'll play "Coasting", a fast shuffle I composed
back in 1990. It's got the feel of "Friday Night At The Cadillac Club" by Bob Berg, remember? Anyway, it's fun, and my local players are finally ready for such tough music.
Other tunes on the agenda will be "From Within" by Michel Camilo and "Pools" by Steps Ahead. Not bad, hu? I'ts a great morning day outside, I'll catch my mountainbike and go for a ride!
Ciao a tutti!
08feb08 Here I am. Just like before, not much music "live" but a lot of listening. Songs, singing along and whisteling. Isn't it the best thing to enjoy regarding music?
Forget "playing", listening is much better.. no, just kidding. But so it is these days. Not much happening around. But there's good about it.
I'm finally finding the time to get together with friends and arrange and rehearse my material. I mean my OLD material. Pieces composed back in the 90s and
never played live. Cool stuff!!
I've just returned from Germany on a quick visit to my lovely 93 year old grandma. I don't know, It may sound funny, but I DO feel good with my German relatives and DO feel good about they way they grew me and how I relate to them nowadays.
So, it's about midnight and it's my time to go to bed. Ciao amici. I'm still around!
06dic07 Hey, long time no write.. Sorry, just like on many other web site.. I pretend to have a diary and then it remains mute. I WILL
pick it up again, promise. Right now I'm home in Liguria, just finished a record-demo of my best jazz situations, and looking forward
to local gigs and better projects for 2008. But nothing major! We all know times are rough, but playing is always a lot of fun
and pleasure, so.. keep on reading and listening!
25sep06 Dal sito www.ferrocarrìl.it, entry 306. Il commento magari fra qualche giorno.. se ce ne fosse bisogno! (per capire di
cosa si tratta rileggere le pagine diary dal 28 agosto)
Devo ringraziare Alessandro di San Remo,sei un grande! Dici delle cose sacrosante! E dalle tue considerazioni soprattutto sui WEB
voglio dire una cosa: sono uno dei gruppi più irritanti e spocchiosi che abbia mai sentito. Della stessa combricola fanno parte
Marchesini, Ross Giallombardo, Gianni Catalano, Nando Rizzo(che schifo...) ecc..! Insomma,tutta gente che suona abitualmente al
Ferrocarril, proprio xchè sono degli spocchiosi e falliti del cazzo, e Geddo ci va a nozze! Sapete com'è,tra frustrati si capiscono!
Lancio un appello ai giovani musicisti:non seguite queste persone come esempi, i veri musicisti sono altri!! Andate a Milano,Torino
ecc.. e ve ne renderete conto! Per diventare veri musicisti bisogna studiare, avere talento passione e soprattutto tanta ma tanta
umiltà! Perchè per fare il musicista bisogna saper suonare, e non andare magari a Milano per poi tornare qui in riviera a farsi
belli!! Quei falliti a Milano non ci restano xchè ci sono fior di musicisti che gli fanno un culo così! Geddo, dai un cattivo
esempio ai ragazzi. Ricky-Diano Marina
05sep06 Hey! Le mie scuse a quelli che leggono e che magari si aspettavano subitissimo altri torrenti di parole. E niente, veramente sono al lavoro. Il mio lavoro "alternativo" che mi piace meno del fare musica e arte, me mi piace un casino lo stesso.
Faccio (qualche settimana a giugno e luglio e qualche settimana a settembre) l'accompagnatore turistico per un tour operator americano che si occupa di vacanze (in Italia) in bicicletta,
quindi sono in giro con dei cicloturisti e li coccolo dalle 7 di mattina alla mezzanotte. Bellissimo ed impegnativo. Dicevo quindi che ho i minuti contati e non ho più avuto tempo di esprimermi, ma pensavo di inserire il commento
successivo alla 300, uno dei commenti spariti dal forum, tanto per far pensare anche chi mi segue.
Bisogna sempre andare a ritroso e rileggere le precedenti ma, ecco qua:
Entry 301 di un simpatizzante:
A me come suona Marchesini piace come musicista, Lo trovo abbastanza originale e
sbadatamente simpatico. Al ferro non è che suoni poi così tanto da stufare...
Risposta 302:
SIMPATICO????? Eeeehhhh???? Alla Faccia. SImpatico è Zaglio,Geddo Ma Marchesini.......
Vorrei dire che l'essere protagonista musicalmente, sul palco, e nella vita, non sempre si coniuga facilmente con l'essere simpatico
a tutti. Christian Meyer ci riesce e lo invidio.. ma ce n'è uno! Diciamo anche che vista la statura e i pensieri di questo Ricky
(di cui alcune frasi leggerete nelle mie prossime entries) mi sembra possibile e quasi probabile che la simpatia reciproca non si
sia sviluppata..
Comunque ammetto che alcuni dei miei ultimi anni non sono stati proprio felicissimi, per vari motivi personali, e la gioia di vivere
che ho da un pò di tempo a questa parte, e la tranquillità di potermi lasciare andare e divertirmi senza dover pensare all'orologio
e ai fatti della vita sono un vero piacere che si riflette su amici e non. Nel passato maleducato e sgarbato penso mai, ma a volte
rabbuito, con poco tempo per fermarmi dopo i concerts, e con allegria.. sbadata (!) quello si.
30aug06 Questa nota è la continuazione della precedente, quindi andrebbe prima letta la entry del 28ago. Comunque ecco qua, qualcuno ha poi risposto:
Purtroppo la vita del musicista è dura e non sempre si riesce a suonare solo quello che ti piace. Lo stesso credo per Marchesini, ha bisogno di lavorare come tutti e quindi suona dove guadagna, anche perchè se hai una famiglia come fai a vivere? Inoltre il musicista in Italia se non suona non guadagna, perchè non ha nessun aiuto dalla stato, come accade in altre nazione e quindi ben vanga MARCHESINI che è un gra musicista e professionista
Ecco la risposta di Ricky, entry 300:
Si appunto VANGA,ZAPPA,PALA e PICCO ...................
28aug06 Sorry, my friends around the world, I'm gonna insert something in italian. A little discussion on music and
musicians starded by a forum on www.ferrocarril.it:
I pensieri di Andrea in risposta alle polemiche sul forum - pagina iniziale di www.ferrocarril.it (locale Live di imperia):
Eccomi, sono Andrea (Marchesini). Cominciamo dal quadro generale. Il forum in questione è del Ferrocarrìl. Qualcuno ha scritto delle cose in modo fastidiosissimo per la mia persona ma facendolo ha toccato degli argomenti forse interessanti per tutti. Quindi le mie risposte potranno a volte rivolgersi all'attacco personale al Marchese (e apro una parentesi: gli attacchi "personali" SONO personali, rivolte a ME, e tuttora, a 46 anni, non riesco a capire quelli che dicono "non prenderla da un punto di vista personale". Scusatemi..) ma più spesso e soprattutto all'argomento musicale nel ponente ligure. Quindi la musica, il musicista, l'arte e la creatività, il mestiere, l'ascoltatore-pubblico, la musica dal vivo e dove, e altro. Insomma uno sguardo generale che mi sento, alla mia età e con le mie esperienze, di poter tranquillamente affrontare con chiunque e ovunque. Su un sito, a Milano o Torino o New York o Calcutta, con Vasco o Pat Metheny, con Mauro Vero o Maurizio Dedoni o Jovanotti Eccetera. Non perché ne so più degli altri, ma perché ne so un pò, ne ho affrontate tante e a tutti i livelli, ho costruito molto della mia vita con le mie forze, e ho spesso delle opinioni definite e forti, e se mi vengono chieste oppure mi trovo nel contesto giusto cerco di farle uscire nel miglior modo possibile. Ovviamente nel MIO miglior modo possibile. Che varia col tempo, con l'esperienza, con le problematiche della vita, con il contesto socio-culturale più o meno adatto a digerire le mie opinioni. Mi conosco abbastanza bene e conosco anche i miei difetti. E ho anche una discreta capacità di autoanalisi. So di non essere un personaggio "comodo" e facile. Il modo in cui sono cresciuto mi ha "creato", e all'interno di questo sto tuttora cercando di migliorare.
Vediamo un po'.
Cominciamo da quella che sembra la prima "entry" che mi colpisce, la 297.
Ma dai mercoledì sarà di nuovo una specie di improvisazione tutta la sera,con Marchesini che farà sempre le stesse cose (chissa se un giorno riuscirà a cambiar modo di suonare) sarà che suonando solo per la grana non gli importa più di tanto di quello che fa e strafà. In quanti gruppi suona? ah 15823546 miiiii lo becchi da per tutto che palle......
Sembra di Ricky. Mercoledì 23 ho suonato al Ferro con Terry Pack e Phil Hudson. Terry ha suonato da noi in zona (facendo il "musicista") per 10 anni e ha una storia musicale di un certo spessore. E' stato invitato al Soleluna di Albisola con Phil Hudson (un altro "spesso") e tramite Enrico Pinna mi hanno invitato a fare il loro batterista e a trovare un altro concerto. E ho trovato il Ferrocarrìl (Davide: ancora grazie). La serata non è stato granché, ho avuto difficoltà ad "entrarci" ma ho aspettato a fare il 2° concerto per farmi un'idea completa. E' andato molto meglio ma magari mi dilungo più avanti. Al Ferrocarrìl ho suonato spesso coi miei progetti, tipo 2 volte l'anno. E non sono mai state delle improvvisate. Chi mi conosce sa che le mie cose non le improvviso. Spesso però c'è dell' IMPROVVISAZIONE, ma quella è un'altra cosa. Posso spiegare in lungo e in largo di cosa si parla ma non è importante. Quello che conta è se la musica jazz, o fusion, o world, o come la vuoi chiamare, con dell' IMPROVVISAZIONE ti piace o no. Se non ti piace (e a me anche non è piaciuta ottusamente certa musica per secoli. Ed è anche in parte vero quello che diceva mi sembra Coltrane, che "il jazz è come le scorregge, piace solo a chi le fa") non ascoltarla, stai a casa e non comprare i dischi. Semplicissimo. Volevo però ribadire che al Ferro ho portato da sempre progetti miei seri, con prove, arrangiamenti, scalette, strutture, e con un filone chiaro e comprensibile. Mai mi sono proposto o sono caduto in delle "specie di improvvisazioni".
Ogni anno negli ultimi 4 ho suonato 1 volta coi DOC-G, la cover+Police band che ho da 6 anni con Mauro Vero. Rodata, preparata, probabilmente banale per alcune orecchie ma sempre intensa per altri. E specializzata in covers commerciali e non. Poi ho suonato (mi sembra) nel 2004 con il sestetto Conga Brava (latin jazz ben fatto), nel 2005 con il mio progetto Dif-Fusion (la mia vera anima musicale; autentica; concerto che in tutti questi anni sono riuscito a proporre solo nel 2005 e in pochissime occasioni; ma ci ho provato, sono riuscito, e continuerò a provare), e quest'anno con Pack e Hudson. Ecco, quest'ultimo concert è stato un po' un minestrone di vari generi, suonato con gusto un po' troppo sofisticato sia per me che per il Ferro. Ma c'era del buono per orecchie buone, e la sera dopo al Soleluna, nell'ambito di una vera rassegna Jazz, la cosa è venuta fuori molto meglio.
Ho poi suonato negli anni precedenti con altri miei progetti sempre serissimi (lo sanno i musicisti e chi ci veniva ad ascoltare) tipo Latin Over (Latin Jazz acustico), Quello In Mezzo (Caba-Pop), Porto Alegre (brasile). Poi ho suonato al Ferro altre volte ma chiamato da altri gruppi. Ma mi sembra di aver fatto solo una serata coi WEB, nei quali ogni tanto sostituisco Luca (mi chiamano, li rispetto, li conosco bene, mi diverto, e ci vado stravolentieri!).
Veniamo al "suonare solo per la grana". Da sempre suono per un caché, eccetto che per rari casi di beneficenza. Inizierei ad intavolare una questione importante. L'esistenza di artisti puri e quella di musicisti mestieranti, e di tutte le sfumature in mezzo. Il MESTIERE di musicista esiste da secoli. La musica muove la gente in vari modi. Nel passato il giullare o il musicista classico creava un momento di estraniazione e sogno per l'avventore o l'aristocratico in teatro, e l'orchestrina faceva ballare. BALLARE, probabilmente l'espressione più sublime che la musica possa scatenare. E veniva remunerato per la sua prestazione. Allo stesso modo oggi alcuni musicisti affrontano la musica e lo strumento come un mestiere, imparano l'arte del suonare, e la mettono a disposizione per essere anche remunerati.
Io purtroppo sono entrato in quest'ottica molto tardi. Sono cresciuto in un momento musicale fertilissimo, gli anni 70, e credevo erroneamente che la musica per me dovesse essere solo "creare" qualcosa di unico e speciale, fare dei dischi, diventare famoso e bravo, e andare avanti così. Come poi io abbia gestito la mia carriera può essere un argomento lungo e tedioso. Passerei subito al fatto che negli ultimi anni, diciamo dal 2000, sono passato all'essere un musicista che fa soprattutto il suo Mestiere. Ho cominciato a lavorare come musicista professionista e semi-professionista per una serie di circostanze, molte delle quali accidentali, e ora mi ritrovo a farlo con una passione ed una felicità immensa. Perché, a differenza di quando ero ragazzo ed ottuso, ora mi piace proprio un mondo suonare il mio strumento, e suonarlo in tante situazioni diverse. Sono felicissimo di essere riuscito a capire ed apprezzare l'essere un musicista lavoratore e di mestiere. Ed ecco qua un concetto che non mi stanco mai di far uscire nelle discussioni musicali coi miei amici (ed anche con gli allievi).
Parto spesso da qui: mio padre negli anni 50-60 aveva un night club (leggendario tra l'altro) nel quale circolavano regolarmente le ORCHESTRE. Prima di continuare vorrei ricordare a chi legge che l'argomento musica si può e si deve affrontare con una veduta ampia, addirittura di secoli. Il dopoguerra, in Italia ed in Europa, è stata una fase chiave la quale noi musicisti contemporanei non dovremmo ignorare. Nel dopoguerra c'era una gran voglia di dimenticare, sognare, divertirsi. Le orchestre portavano canzoni e musica da ballo nei locali. Mentre i Beatles e Elvis Presley facevano hits e 45 giri, le orchestrine e gli orchestrali facevano covers leggere per un pubblico spensierato e comunque di classe.
In questi nostri anni invece il panorama musicale è diversissimo per certi versi, ma per altri certe cose sono rimaste le stesse. Quindi, io Andrea, dopo aver fatto solo original music dall'età di 15 anni fino ai 30 (quindi composizioni nei miei gruppi, composizioni mie, ad Alassio e a New York), dopo essermi preso una pausa fino al 97, sono passato a fare il musicista di mestiere dai 37 anni in avanti imparando le cose che avrei dovuto imparare da ragazzo. Ho fatto una carriera enormemente al contrario, ma ora, a 46 anni, ho accumulato finalmente un bagaglio di conoscenza di pezzi, in tutti i settori, che mi rende orgoglioso e contento.
Faccio il mestiere di musicista (ripeto, per circostanze particolari; non faccio solo questo; in primavera ed autunno faccio anche l'accompagnatore turistico; e seriamente; da 6 anni) impegnandomi tantissimo di mio (all'interno della mia vita quotidiana e delle mie annate più o meno facili, colpite da vicende personali ne più ne meno come quelle degli altri) e prestando le mie capacità ad altri gruppi - musicisti che mi chiamano. In tutti questi anni ho sempre cercato di non cadere nel tranello del gruppo "improvvisato", dove si mettono insieme delle persone, si scelgono i pezzi all'ultimo minuto, e poi sul palco ci si gira a dire "che pezzo facciamo?", ma non nascondo che mi sia capitato. Confido sul fatto che gli altri musicisti mi conoscano (se non mi conoscono impareranno a conoscermi) e mi chiamino solo per cose ben fatte ed organizzate. Organizzate bene affinché ci si possa muovere bene ed anche "uscirne" se la musica ti trascina. Organizzare per essere liberi insomma. E comunque mi chiamano. Ancora più spesso quest'anno, dopo che alcune montagne che avevo da scalare nella mia vita personale sono state conquistate.
"Non Gli Importa Più Di Tanto di Quello Che Fa e Strafa". Una frase facile e scontata che viene da una persona che non mi conosce. Non sono un santo neanch'io e ricordo com'ero da giovane, ignorante, e presuntuoso, e ho usato atteggiamenti anche peggiori. Non ne sono fiero e mi guardo spesso allo specchio. Comunque, mi importa SEMPRE di quello che faccio. Chi mi conosce sa che il livello di intensità con cui vivo TUTTE LE COSE è altissimo. Un livello che ho maturato grazie alle mie radici, alle scelte di vita che ho fatto, ai viaggi, alle esperienze, letture, discussioni. "Strafa". Musicalmente ho iniziato "strafacendo". L'esuberanza del ragazzo-musicista. Nella seconda fase della mia "carriera" (se così la si può definire..), a New York, ho imparato ad "entrare" quanto meglio possibile "nei" pezzi, "nella" musica, cercando e trovando il ruolo del drummer. In contesti Hard Rock, pop, funk, jazz, soft. Ero comunque un pò conservativo e tendevo a pulire molto le mie parti e I miei patterns. Nella terza fase del mio drumming, qui in Liguria, dal '97, mi sono "lasciato andare" e vado più spesso che non a "ruota libera" facendo uscire quello che sento. E sono contentissimo. Mi sento da anni musicalmente e finalmente LIBERO. E' uno degli obbiettivi più importanti per ogni musicista-interprete, cioè quello di raggiungere un livello di conoscenza, tecnica, e passione per potersi esprimere naturalmente, liberamente, e felicemente, senza condizionamenti. E sì, probabilmente strafaccio. Suono DAL VIVO, mi viene così, sento anche spesso il dovere di DARE al mio pubblico. Ho anche comunque una discreta capacità di ascoltarmi e vedere se faccio cagate o no. Ma il punto fondamentale è che a prescindere dal risultato per le orecchie di un pubblico così eterogeneo come il nostro, che la gente se ne accorga o no, io sul palco mi esprimo con intensità, libertà, arte, passione, rabbia , dolcezza, purezza, animalità, e tante altre cose. E ci sono quelli che chiudono gli occhi, abbandonano la mente, apprezzano il "rumore" di una batteria, e se ne accorgono! Ad altri invece non faccio lo stesso effetto. Siamo tutti diversi, e anche condizionati. Chi da fattori politici (in questa querelle, che non riguarda solo me ma ltri gruppi e personaggi, vedo anche delle connotazioni di parte, destra e sinistra, alternativi e capitalisti, pop e reggae, funk e punk. Mah…), chi come me da anni di ascolto ed analisi e quindi spesso con una diminuita capacità di capire le emozioni musicali ed un'aumentata analisi tecnica delle prestazioni. Ma per chiudere.. sì, il più spesso delle volte mi calo nel ruolo che la musica o i musicisti richiedono, ma a volte "strafaccio", e con gran godimento! E non appena abbasso questo mio livello la gente se ne accorge e me lo fa capire, proprio come l'altra sera al Ferrocarrìl!!!!
Per chiudere questa prima risposta, sì, sono un po' dappertutto, specialmente quest'estate (molto meno a scorsa). Spesso col mio Jazz Pot, a volte con i miei-nostri DOC-G, e altre con chi mi chiama: Jokers, WEB, Karamazov, Ricomincio da Trio, Pack e Hudson, Pippo Matino. E sono stato benissimo e sono contentissimo!! E lo si capisce anche da quanto ho scritto nelle settimane precedenti, in inglese..
14aug06 The working drummer in Italy.. just like most uf us around here, things are, if you start playing professionally and want to bring home a little money,
in no time you'll be caught in the "no-originals" web, and play hundreds and hundreds of covers. Being pop, or rock, or brazilian & latin, or jazz & fusion.. but covers!
The alternative? Have a lot of time and continue writing and searching for possibilities to perform creative music. But then also
the other good musicians wll be caught in the spiral so you don't know who is gonna be able to play your music.. Well, for the time being
even playing covers makes me feel good and happy! I went out the other night with Rino Nicolosi on piano (a very good player, lives in my home town.; we've been doing dozen of gigs together this year!)
and joined Pietro Piovanello, a local singer who turns out to be very good in his field, and as a fourth man had again Giampiero Lobello on trumpet.
We played some tunes from the past that really hit my soul (and played them very well too, with the keyboardist playing clan and safe bass lines and the trumpet adding.. magic!). For my foreign readers: Sally by Vasco Rossi is a peace of art (tell the jazz talebans..)
and also "Io sò Cuntento é Stà" (or something like that) by Pino Daniele: fantastic! In other words, if you do something which you may think of as un-glamorous, you still have
a chance to re-set your mind, let your heart come out, and enjoy things your real way, not how your brain tells you you should.. Ciao!
13aug06 Here I am! At home, on my terrace in Alassio overlooking the bay and the Mediterranean. Had a great day yesterday with Francesca.
She's gonna stay at my place for a couple of weeks while her daughter is with dad a few miles away. After a great rise we went out for a
bicyle ride, had a quick lunch, worked around the house for a bit (gardening & else) then I took of for a jazz gig and she went for
her nursing night shift. I did a "Jazz at Thai" performance at my cousin's restaurant in my home town. Piano, el bass, drums, and finally the long awaited trumpet player. It was great! I hadn't been
playing with a good trumpeter in ages, so it immediately felt like flying through Miles, Dizzie, Winton, Lew. Sensations ang good music. The side story is
.. how many standards will ever need to know?? I played a couple of new entries in my dictionary: Work Song (by Nat Adderley),
and it was a cute peace I had a few of chances to listen to and memorize before the gig. Another one was The preacher, by Horace Silver. Cute too, played straight from the chart.
A great night, 90% of the time on brushes. Ciao e a presto!
19jan06 Incredible.. more then 1 year from the last entry.. Well it was busy and intense; lots of changes in personal life, plus
another sad event in my family, my mom passing away after a long cancer ordeal. Changes in love life, changes house. Music is here to stay though.
I'm back on track and will find a little time in the future to expend on this "diary" page. Ciao!
04oct05 Even worst this time around... Here I am! More ordeals during the summer but overall a great year! I will be back into music and drumming in the fall
so stay tuned. I'm in Tuscany right now enjoying good company, food, wine. Working on my Dif-Fusion trio and will present it to different foreign countries
for minitours with embassy sponsorship. Then my "Jazz Pots" are in full drive, with a trumpeter being added to my latin trio and rehearsal
being programmed for an italian-french new-bop connection (piano trio). At the same time I'm getting more and more into
singing, and the "Blues Buzz" trio is almost ready to hit the road of the strong bear houses of northern Italy. Last but not least my local projects
are happening, both my long time Sting tribute and new rock blues collaborations with local quintets and sextets.
So... when do I get some rest??? Who cares!! You only live..twyce! Ciaooooooooo
24mar05 Can't believe how much time has passed since my last entry... But things have changed a lot since nov '04! First of all the
CD came out just as I said before. Things looked more or less ok, sort of like I imagined. Then december brought a few surprises. First of all
my mom underwent some medical exams and cancer was detected in her abdomen. More thorough examinations, then operation, then infection
and almost gone, then slow recovery which I'm still assisting these days. A major event which absorbed tons of my time which I easily
and happily dedicated to the situation. Simultaneously I broke up with my long time (13 years!) companion, but that's a private matter.
Also the previous one, but this is more personal and not a subject to be presented on my damn site, right? Anyway, music is slow as ever, my drumming
a lot better then just a year ago, but what matters is good music, right? And that's not easy anymore to create and present, specially my age and with
all the daily, weekly, and monthly circumstances which accumulate and seem to constantly increase! Not complaining, just being realistic!
These days though I'm starting to see a bit of light at the horizon. New house, new friends, old and new music projects, and probably in a bit
also some composing. More next time. gotta run as always! Ciaoooooooooooo!
14nov04 Ciao my friends! Ok, I think the copies of my new CD will be coming in tomorrow, so I'll be glad to start receiving some orders. I am very well known around my fellows
to be very picky about things in general, so if I speak out loud about this "Concert in Shillong" being a great album of music, well,
believe me IT IS! How can I describe it to both musicians, sofisticated music lovers, or just casual listeners? The best I can do (so far) is this:
A brief review of "Concert in Shillong" by Andrea:
We can certainly put the album in the "fusion", "instrumental", "electric jazz", "jazz-rock" cathegories. What you will hear is drums,
electric bass (with effects and some loop machines which record bass notes and play'em back in a repetitive manner), and electric guitar
(with loop machines too). Overall the impact of the trio is bigger then standard trios, the sounds of the stringed instruments and machines
make it feel like a quartet or quintet. A very good feeling! The album is dense, but luckily there's also a good number of slow tunes, rubato atmospheres,
improvised interplay, spaces with no drums. I would say an incredibly well balanced album, especially considering it was recorded live
without thinking at all of making a record out of the show! Now, let's see the 9 tunes 1 by 1:
Calcutta's Joy: Alessio Menconi wrote this tune before leaving for the tour. It can be devided into 4 parts: in the first one
guitar and bass gracefully play improvised parts in an Indian atmosphere (guitar Alap), then expose the head melody over a simple odd meter arpeggio.
after a few minutes (2nd part) the drums sets a 7/8 beat over which guitar and bass groove and solo. After a climax the atmosphere
comes back down, drums stops, and the bass improvises over a minor rubato carpet of guitar notes. The tune ends with a strong
drum solo over a rhithmic ostinato that reminds a bit of carnatic repetitions. Almost 12 minutes long. Probably the best piece on the album!
Bass Song For Napoli: written by Pippo Matino a long time ago, the song is very, very different. It is based on a long bass riff-arpeggio
which the real-time looping machine repeats every 30-40 seconds. Drums starts of quiet and adds a bit of dynamic and sounds after every cycle.
The interesting thing is that the guitar is free to float over this atmosphere which is relaxing at the beginning but frantic towards the
middle and ending of the tune! Quite different, beautiful, and interesting. Uups, the drums is a little too loud, but we couldn't
bring it down 'cause all we had was a 2 track fixed-mix recording, so, enjoy it anyway! Total time 4:45.
Dif-Fusion: As we got closer to the India tour we decided to put a little spice into our concerts and insert a totally improvised short section
and Dif-Fusion opens with a 3'-4' total-improvisation of guitar and drums which came out incredibly good. I mean, not "easily and safely" developed, but
daring, with stops, groove and tempo changes, fast sudden obbligatos. It begins with a "Punjabi MC" groove and later settles into a
sort of McLaughlin-Cobham scenario. After this opening the whole band moves into a great and long version of "Blackbird", an old
Beatles tune often used by jazz musicians as a good field for soloing and dialogs (some of you may remember Jaco's version or even Brad Mehldau's).
Our interpretation is exceptional, loose, with a lot of groove and climaxes. I love it! total 12:05!
Doctor Mike: Another Pippo Matino tune. It is the opening track of his 1990 solo album. Mike Stern played on the original tune and Pippo told us it was written
in the studio, while jamming and recording. A super-super energy-jazz-rock piece with a nice and clean melody. Lots of solo and grooving
after the head. Hey, Horacio E Negro Hernandez played rums on the original track, and I had to work on that!! 6:02.
Blus Verses: A real "jazz" peace (but yes, played with electric instruments). A blues "up" tune with a nice head, with a couple of hits to make it a little more interesting.
Then a long guitar solo, a cute bass solo, and a few drum trades. Tradition! Great piece to make the whole album more "round".
Written by Alessio Menconi, 8:42.
I Shot The Sheriff. Well the story is that we played this tune only once, at this particular concert in Shillong, 'cause the festival
had a strong "reggae" theme. We never rehearsed it, just called it at the sound check. Of course we all played it before. It must be
because of Jaco Pastorius, but the tune has become a classic among fusion players for some instrumental fun at concerts and jams in Italy.
We liked the way it came out, we played intensily and loose, and we decided to put it on the CD. Tons of groove and interaction, lots of
fun! 5:43.
Remembering: this one comes straight from Andrea's "Back To Europe" 1989 solo album. As in the original version (which though sounded
different 'cause it had 7-8 musicians on it!) Andrea sings-vocalizes the initial riff. A ballad with lots of melody and tasty guitar
soloing (Mike Stern played the solos on the '89 CD. I am working on remixing it, so stay tuned!), touching but strong. I called it Remembering
'cause in those days I was thinking and remembering about Jaco and how we lost him so soon. Besides having jammed with him
a couple of times, I also gave him pizza and cappuccino when he was begging around this coffee shop I worked at. "Remembering Jaco".
The short "crazy" timeless section in the midle of the tune kind of represents his brain turning mad. What a musician!!! 7:03.
Teen Town: And here he lives! This is a fast version of one the most important "fusion" tunes ever. Written by Jaco Pastorius
we play it with a latin feel and incredible intensity. In particular Pippo Matino seems to exceed the master by laying
down such bass notes and grooves which make it feel like like... 3 players! Seriously, I've listened to a lot of bassists, but this guy
from Neaples beats'em all! Superb guitar improvisation, then an open drum solo, and a loud ending. Madonna!!!! 8:57.
'Round Modnight: Chill, man! The CD ends with a calm solo-bass version of the classic Thelonius Monk piece. Great bass sound, harmonization,
interpretation and feel. The perfect way to breathe in a bit of air after such a heavy duty album and ... start again from the top!
Thanks to all of you for reading. Hey, if it sound interesting enough, go to the "BUY" section, get one for you, and one for a friend!
Ciaooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!
14oct04 Well, it has taken a few months, instead of days, but here I am again. The CD I've been working on for so long is
almost ready. It's a sort of "official bootleg" of a show we (me and Alessio Menconi and Pippo Matino) did in Shillong, India,
during our feb 2004 tour. It was funny. We left Europe for this tour which we had planned for a while but where not sure of how it
was going to be. I had barely met Matino in the past, Menconi suggested his presence for the project.
But I hadn't toured with Alessio either, so the chance of doing such a unique musical experience was there and almost unbelievable
for me, but how was it going to turn out? We had 1 day of rehearsal in my hometown (Yes. I'm sorry about it, but rehearsing long
days and hours was something we could all do as kids, less as grown-ups struggling to keep doing music).
So we left Italy (with a miracolous last minute Visa for Pippo) and did one more rehearsal in Kolkata, then played our first gig
there. We started the tour, and toward the end of it we finally arrived at the organizer's town in Meghalaya, yeah, Shillong!
We had this concert by the lake, as headliners of the local "Roots" raggae festival, and played loosely, trying to give our best.
It wasn't all downhill, though. We certainly weren't thinking of making an album out of that show (and maybe that's why it
came out good!). Alessio started the evening and the mechanics on his guitar gave him the hardest time. In fact you may here
him "tuning" while playing certain pieces or solos. Or you may here his single notes in tune 'cause he could bend the single strings,
and then here a "flat" chord afterwards. I'm telling you, he was cursing on stage! And Pippo. Man, he was given this 100watts
amplifier which would distort from second one. So the only solution was to borrow a big monitor and run his signal through a
smaller mixer, then into the main mixer. The word "pissed off" is not enough... But we played, and with just a very few edits, and a bit of EQ, compression,
and who knows what else, the music is here, and you should definitely try it. I'll put some samples on WinMX soon. Ciao!
29may04 Once again, more than really busy. My sister Daniela, age 40, passed away last week.
Life is just so weird... she was on vacation in Bali and staying at her new boyfriend's house in Chandidasa.
Catching the sun next to a brand new pool with cool waters, a deep pool for diving instruction. Jumped in,
nobody around, something happened which we are not sure about, and she drowned. All in less than half an hour...
But life must go on. It's just that keeping music going is becoming harder and harder.
Let's stop here, work at things, and come back with a new, happier entry in a few days. Ciao!
23apr04 Sorry, been very busy lately, working "multi level" on 5 different important things.
Hey, the live album with the music we played in India will be processed in may. Stay tuned!
28mar04 I first ran into indian music in 2003, after getting involved with Jonas Hellborg and
Shawn Lane for that Eastern India tour we did. It's kind of ridicolous if compared to the Beatles or
Coltrane, who had profound involvements decades ago, but that's life! Anyway, just like everybody
else, I experienced a deep involvement with that music's particular forms, instruments, rules.
And obviously tried to emulate a tiny bit and incorporate some stuff. But luckily I stopped early
enough... because there's not much point into trying to "fuse" bits of Indian clasical with my
european-american roots. I mean, not for me. So far I've listened to othe musicians' attempts,
and what it comes down to has been trying to play and compose pieces of music with western
instruments, and creating melodies that are close to some ragas, with rhythmic figures that recall
indian hindustani or carnatic talas and mathematical formulas. And there's some (actually few) great
recordings out there (not beacuse I've plyed with him, but Hellborg's and Lane's Good People and
Icon are my favourite), but to me india music more than anything else is a "mood".
When I play indian CDs at home I still don't understand much of which raga is going on (how could I,
it's not easy...), but what I truly love is the "mood" my ears and mind get in. It's like a vacation
to one of the most beautiful, unique , and true places you can think of. You go there, then when you
are back home and think about it, or watch slides, movies, photos, you feel that strange sense of
anxiousness and would die to be there again. So is indian music for me, an incredibly intense mood.
And in this perspective I think Shawn Lane has gotten very close to an ideal: he had a sound, a
phrasing, an attitude that were an all together thing that came through as a "beautiful mood".
Listen to his sound more than anything else, and you'll understand what I mean! We miss you, Shawn!
20mar04 Has anybody thought of a "hallowed" maple drumstick? I wish I could have a sufficient
reputation to ask Vater to do a special stick for me ... It should be as large as a Fusion stick, a little
bit longer, with a barrel tip instead of the round one, and lighter (ther only solution drilling a long hole in it!).
Nuts, eh???
18mar04 Been thinking about drums (ha ha). Hey, in many ways drums is still present today. Mostly because of Metal (...).
But at the same time many listeners and musicians, including myself, are kind of bored by the
"sound" of drums. maybe it's because it's barely a hundred years old and this is the time for drums
(which is a specific instrument, made of snare, bass drum, toms, and cymbals, you know? meaning no matter
how far you want to go with your imagination in trying to change things around, the drumset is The Drumset...)
to stay a little further away from contemporary ears. World Music (what a stupid name... and they all say "fusion" is a bad name...)
has brought percussion, and to be quite honest "percussion" usually brings up more "rhythm" then
drums itself! But maybe it's just the India influence that makes me think. All those rhythms. Actually, and
this is something I tell all my students, "exciting rhythms"!!!
But no, when I have a chance to play my good all drumset in a nice controlled "booth", where all those
fat frequencies come well out, hey, I just love it too much!!!
But speaking about sound, I guess one of the factors that annoies audiences the most is acoustic drums in a bad room, with all
those harsh highs right in your ear...
at one time I even thought of a transparent screen under the snare drum to keep some of the bottom snare noise
away. How is it that I have a feeling there's too much cymbals and wash in my playing, and then just go
crazy with enjoyment while playing them?
But while taking my dog out (Sergio) for his evening walk (actually his evening leak) I also thought
that still to this date, drums with percussion in Weather Report is still one of the hottest rhythmic things
ever in modern music!!!! Look, I'm not crazy, it's just fun writing all this.
Seriously now, life and its problems are something else. Take it from an unknown drummer of northern Italy who just came home from a tour
in Mizoram, Nagaland, Assam ... unbelievable!
Last thing: I've been looking for the longest time for a dear pianist friend of mine, but couldn't find his e-mail:
Rick Bassett, are you anywhere to be found? Ciao a tutti!
13mar04 ...Well, gotta start sometime. So, I will not start with a long story of my life or
even longer views on what's happening to the world right now, or to myself in particular, but rather from
smaller things like.. Hey, 2 nights ago I went to see Horacio "El Negro" Hernandez in Nice, at this
CEDAC center, nice small venue, where he was playing with 3 other italian-puertoricans who live in Torino
(Ivàn Bridòn, Amik Guerra, and Daniel Martinez). Well, they blew me away. Tight set, very much stage-conscious,
excellent cuban-jazz-fusion. Got to meet "El Negro", my favourite drummer. It would take me another (meaning
1 more) life to get just close to his playing (which is not only technically amazing, but also truly
beautiful). I will hopefully develop on this show and tell you more next time.
The other thing is, I got to meet John McLaughlin. It was brief. I could feel he must be approached
by hundreds of musicians like me, but he wasn't too annoied. Talked shortly about some musicians we knew,
plus I told him a bit about my India experience and told him he should go and play the next "Congo Square"
festival in Kolkata. Maybe he will (Satyajit and Souvik, contact him or his management!). Anyway, the next
day I went to his super technical web site and after a few seconds I remembered 1 big item in life: never
talk too much or too deeply with somebody until you know well enough about his/her history. And McLaughlin led an incredible
life!!! Just check his "influence" pages. Hasn't anybody written a book about John's life (so far)?
Man, he has red, studied, experienced, listened, played, enjoyed so many things, it's just unbelievable.
But then , here it is, I wish I had the same chances, but at the same time if I had them, would I have been
able to take them? There's possibilities but also determination, motivation, or maybe just a pure
"built in" chip that makes you enjoy some things but also makes you feel unconfortable when trying to endure
harder situations. As we say in Italy ... boh!!!!! Anyway, 1 real bottom line is, listen carefully,
enjoy as much as you can, but also question everything and ... keep going! Ciao from am
22 jan 04 Will continue about the tour some day. It went on 'till feb 9th and I have notes. Will finish soon! Promised!
21 jan 04 As I was saying yesterday, we arrive at Mumbay International, take a bus for the Domestic
Terminal, and here's a first brief impact for my friends: we walk out of the terminal and eat a small
lonely dinner in a nice restaurant just outside, in a parking lot. It's nightime, plenty of dogs around,
mosquitos, but good food in the restaurant. Back in the waiting area we meet a doctor from Pesaro - italy, who is
going to Amehdabad for some seminars, with his wive and 4 adopted little girls from Equador. Amazing!
Then the long wait, about 6 hours for the next day early morning flight to Kolkata.
20 jan 04 Pippo is at my house. We drank a little too much at dinner last night ... We wake up at 5,
pick up Alessio in Genova at 6, get to Malpensa kind of late, reach the wrong terminal, rush to the right one,
and already we have a problem... the guy at electronic tickets tells me the second flight from Mumbay to Kolkata
does not take our names. So he issues the right ticket but we expect to be waiting in Mumbay about 16
hours instead of 7. Nice start!
19 jan 04 Panic! I did my visa a few days ago, and so did Alessio; but Pippo... Well, his passport had expired
a while ago, so he renewed it and received i back only last week. He tried asking for his India Visa in Rome
but he got told the processing takes 3/4 days. I tell him "well, if you come to Milan as you're supposed to,
do your visa there monday morning, and it'll be signed in the afternoon". So he does, but, surprise,
Milan does not process application of southern italians. They have to go to Rome... so as I said, panic!!!
I start calling (talking 11 am; and the office closes at 12!!!) the Italian Embassy in Delhi, and our
organizers in Kolkata for help. And magically the Milan Consul got a call and 5 minutes before due time, and
Pippo's visa got accepted and given back to him in the afternoon. Man...
1 jan 04 The India Tour is getting closer. both Alessio Menconi and Pippo Matino are still not tuned to what's coming up,
but I'm hoping they'll be synched by the time we leave...
