New from Italy...Viva Roberto!!

My good friend, the acclaimed Italian pianist Roberto Magris, has not one , but two exciting new recordings - check back soon for the reviews:


KANSAS CITY OUTBOUND / ROBERTO MAGRIS TRIO

...featuring the last recording session by jazz icon ART DAVIS (the legendary bassist for John Coltrane, Dizzy Gillespie, Louis Armstrong and Max Roach as well as other notables). A great trio performance, a rare collector's item !!!

From the liner notes by James Hale:...Peterson, Tyner, Cowell, Hill, Monk, Ellington… the roll call of great pianists present in spirit in Kansas City on these two days continues with one other who Davis felt Magris conjured the first time they met: "the Legendary Hassan." (Hassan Ibn Ali). "You play like Hassan", Dr. Art told Magris "Your sound and concept remind me of him"... Art Davis’ words carried authority, just like the man himself carried authority. His stand against discrimination at the New York Philharmonic shone a light on the continuing racism in U.S. symphonies, and his application of cello fingering to the double bass helped revolutionize the way the instrument was played. A giant figure, Davis died just three weeks after this, his last recording session. (James Hale is a regular contributor to DownBeat and Signal To Noise, and the co-author of The Billboard Illustrated Encyclopedia of Jazz & Blues)

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RESTLESS SPIRITS / ROBERTO MAGRIS & BIG BAND RITMOSINFONICA CITTA' DI VERONA
... the best of Magris' compositions and arrangements from his 25-years long international career performed by a 43-piece super big band

From the liner notes by Ed Blanco:...The classic big band performance captured on this disc is reminiscent of the kind of music you hear from today’s contemporary large orchestras like the renowned 50-piece Netherland’s Metropole Orchestra or the sounds once produced by such big bands like Woody Herman’s Thundering Herds or the legendary Stan Kenton Orchestra’s of the past. BBRS Director Marco Pasetto has done a magnificent job in developing a relatively young musical organization into a mature jazz oriented ensemble that can hang with the best orchestras in the world. Pianist Roberto Magris demonstrates once again why he is considered among the elite jazz artists of our time. He plays the piano with intensity, feeling and heart-felt passion leaving his all on the keys and his soul in the music. His compositions are creative and his arrangements are fresh and dynamic—all coming together to help deliver a restless and resounding big band musical experience you will not soon forget.

(Ed Blanco is a member of Jazz Jounalist Association and a regular contributor for eJazznews, Jazzreview and All About Jazz, and hosts several jazz radio programs at WDNA 88.9 FM "Serious Jazz" radio station in Miami)



Thanks also to Paul Collins Management