Third Wave is a snapshot of the musical universe of the versatile musician and composer from Vicenza. His music shows an opening towards the demands of contemporaneity but also a profound respect for jazz tradition, whose linguistic codes he has studied for a long time. On the one hand the writing and on the other the interpretation of the songs and standards. The common thread that binds these two expressive instances is the 50’s and 60’s jazz tradition, an obsession that crosses the "third phase" of the drummer's stylistic exploration and to which he consecrates this first record.
In this straight-ahead approach, however, there are several elements of freshness. The approach to sound, the metric modulations, the skilful use of dynamics frame the album within a contemporary post-bop where the clarity and balance of the rhythm section are flanked by the harmonic choices and improvisations of the soloists, closer to a controlled modernity. On the guitar we have Luca De Toni, a stable collaborator of the drummer in several projects. Graduated from the Berklee in Boston he had the opportunity to grow with the greatest masters of contemporary jazz. His way of playing gives, in fact, a modern look to the music through an iridescent harmonic spectrum in which the most orthodox solutions coexist and blend with the novelties of contemporary jazz. On tenor saxophone Robert Bonisolo, a musician who needs no introduction.
Virtuoso of his own instrument, he is stylistically a coltranian, able to reconcile the lessons of saxophonists such as Michael Brecker and Bob Berg with the sound of Dexter Gordon. His meeting with the leader dates back to 2020 and gave rise to a musical collaboration that culminated in the realization of this project. On the double bass Ares Tavolazzi, a musician with a full sound, with a deep knowledge of the jazz tradition but who has explored other musical universes in his career thus reaching a personal synthesis that makes the sound very recognizable. In short, a true master.
The album opens with Tribulacao, a song with a Latin mood and a modal sound with a narrative structure rich in dinamics. De Angelis tells us about it: “The piece is dedicated to my partner Chiara. I tried to photograph a difficult period of his life which, after various tribulations, ended with a certain serenity ”.
Boplicity is an iconic piece of the cool period born from the pen of Miles Davis (who signs himself with the pseudonym of Cleo Henry) and Gil Evans. The leader subjects the theme to rhythmic variations that slightly change the flow thanks also to his underlining with the brushes. The general approach remains a swing medium with solid and relentless accompaniment, a terrain for energetic improvisations by soloists.
Lake Zurich is the only song written by the guitarist, a jazz waltz that strikes for its depth and melancholy. Perfect to tell the loneliness and drama of this historical period that struck us. Beatrice is a wonderful song written by Sam Rivers, fourth track of the disc. De Angelis tells us: "It is the first thing we all played in the studio together, and I decided to keep it. It is a wonderful piece that I never tire of playing even after years ".
Diamond Boy is a song with an introspective atmosphere, with a Shorterian atmosphere and a nocturnal melody. The leader's drumming differs here from the other tracks by revealing a free approach to mood even 8th which contains the best examples of contemporary drumming from Jorge Rossy to Brian Blade.The drummer describes it like this: “it's a song dedicated to my brother. The A was written straight away. B, on the other hand, had a longer gestation. I try to tell the adolescent phase of a person who reaches maturity by making important and difficult choices "
The sixth track is a famous Italian song by Gino Paoli, Senza Fine. The drummer's arrangement brings the song to a more pressing jazz waltz than the original, declined in the present, with an atmosphere devoid of sentimentality where the outside phrasing of Bonisolo and the punctual and dark comping of the guitarist stand out.
Third Wave is the title track of the album. An energetic and assertive piece in which a hard-bop legacy clearly emerges linked to the harmonic world of the first Coltrane and its use of short and incisive motivic cells. The author talks about it like this: "Third Wave was written during the third wave. It is a song that I have played in various contexts and in various ways. It is certainly the one that tells the most about my phase linked to tradition”.
The album ends with the famous Just in Time standard. The author describes his intentions as follows: "It is a standard linked to tradition that I have always liked for its melody. A song that I wanted to record in this way because I wanted a moment in which to play alone with Robert without any accompaniment, bringing out that slightly more aggressive vein that we both have ”.
1 Tribulaçao (F. De Angelis) 4.48
2 Boplicity (C. Henry, G. Evans) 5.27
3 Lake Zurich (L. De Toni) 8.18
4 Beatrice (S. Rivers) 5.27
5 Diamond Boy (F. De Angelis) 8.52
6 Senza Fine (G. Paoli) 6.56
7 Third Wave (F. De Angelis 4.30
8 Just in Time (J. Styne, B. Comden, A. Green) 3.01
Total 47.19
Robert Bonisolo – Tenor Saxophone
Luca De Toni - Guitar
Ares Tavolazzi – Double-bass
Fabio De Angelis - Drums
Recorded, Mixed & Mastered on August 2021 at Digitubestudio, Mantova – Italy
Sound Engineer: Carlo Cantini
Artwork: Simone De Angelis
Graphic: Studioclessidra.it
Produced by GleAM Records
Printed in Italy 2022
