FRANCO D’ANDREA TRIO with Gabriele Evangelista and Roberto Gatto “Live”

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ARTIST

Franco D’Andrea Trio

ALBUM TITLE

“Live”

LABEL

Parco della Musica
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Just over a year after Something Bluesy and More, and as a direct continuation of that album, D’Andrea’s new trio has released a double live album. This is a particularly enticing prospect, even in the context of the pianist’s remarkable career, as it marks the first club recording by this new group in the trio format. The concert took place at the Torrione in Ferrara, over two sets which, in keeping with the significance of the occasion, featured different setlists and an expanded repertoire. Apparently, the recording was not initially intended for release, but the fact that it has now seen the light of day is a stroke of good fortune: the album is quite simply flawless, both artistically and technically.

As only D’Andrea can, the album brings an entire perspective on the history and language of jazz back into play. With the exception of “Norwegian Wood” and “Nine Bars”, the repertoire traces a genuine historical journey of extraordinary density, yet without the slightest hint of a museum-piece mentality. It is the Heraclitean river that has always represented something of a “state of mind” for D’Andrea: a place where one can never step into the same waters twice, a reality in constant flux.

The pianist exercises his leadership as an organising principle from within the music, moving through the sound and continually transforming material over which he has complete command. In doing so, he sets in motion a process of recomposition that finds its fullest expression in the live setting.

The trio, built around a certain diversity of approaches, not least between generations, becomes an open field of continuous musical conversation. Evangelista creates multiple points of anchorage, providing the piano with footholds and angular phrases that continually shift the centre of gravity. Gatto, meanwhile, dismantles even the most fundamental notions of pulse through a constant fluidity of movement that breaks the beat into its constituent particles and reassembles it, until the drumming becomes an almost pure flow of energy.

Above all this rises D’Andrea’s piano, in a performance that is nothing short of monumental and utterly distinctive. Beyond the purely instrumental dimension, there is also the extraordinary work of organising and reshaping the musical material, revealing the pianist’s encyclopaedic knowledge, remarkable for both its breadth and depth.

Looking back over D’Andrea’s history as a trio pianist, we can identify ensembles that, in certain respects, we might prefer to this one — a strictly personal judgement, limited to those particular aspects. Yet we wholeheartedly agree with D’Andrea’s own assessment of the “uniqueness of sound” achieved by this trio. For that reason, and for everything already discussed, we can only recommend this magnificent album without the slightest reservation.

Sandro Cerini

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