For his latest record release, Giovanni Mazzarino chooses a trio of excellent Sicilian musicians (but Panascia has been living in the States for years), alongside the experienced Adam Nussbaum, already a member - together with Steve Swallow - of the trio with which Mazzarino had recorded Nostalgia (Splasch, 2002).
The training certainly does not lack technical qualities and the work allows all members to show their skills: the young Dino Rubino, emerging trumpeter (he plays in the groups of Francesco Cafiso and has just released a CD in his name, I am in love with te, in quintet for Venus), has a classical structure but of elegant energy and lyricism; the same can be said of Giuseppe Mirabella, a guitarist with a fluent and elaborate phrasing; Marco Panascia emerges with his double bass both in solos with a strong sonic depth (for example in "No Way," conducted in trio, and in "Rhumba & Tango"), as in the non-routine support of the piano solos; of Nussbaum it is difficult to add anything to the well-known qualities, except that his beat is very present even in the most intense sounding tracks.
Mazzarino, for his part, confirms on the one hand a sense of swing (which emerges in the fastest songs), on the other sensitivity in the more melodic interpretations (which emerges in the lyrical pieces, such as "Mother" - long conducted in a trio - and " Never Let Me Go "). And as a composer he tests himself with excellent results in both directions.
The fact remains that we are dealing with a work with a very traditional style, which surprises only in a few passages (for example in the change of scene of "Mother," with the Davisian entry of Ruby's trumpet) and that, despite the general quality , risks not thrilling those looking for something new. But that will appeal to lovers of the mainstream.
https://www.allaboutjazz.com/light-giovanni-mazzarino-review-by-aaji-staff.php
