Thursday, March 25, 2021

Francesco Amenta - Midtown Walk (March 2021)

New album for the saxophonist and composer Francesco Amenta, with his New York Quartet's, with Kimon Karoutszos on double bass and Gary Kerkezou on drums. Guest of the band is the American pianist, Cyrus Chestnut, famous musician and well known for years on the American and European jazz scene.

The album was recorded and produced by Jhon Lee, legendary double bass player Dizzy Gillespie, Sonny Rollins and many other jazz legends.

There are 8 tracks on the album of which 7 are original compositions and an arrangement of a Duke Ellington song,"Come Sunday", written in 1942 as part of the first movement of a suite entitled "Black, Brown and Beige". Each song on the disc, are arranged and written by the band's leder, for this recording.

"Midtown Walk, this is the title of the album, out on the label Amenta Music International (AMI), is a photograph of the New York jazz scene, seen through the eyes of the composer, with all its colors, from the roots of jazz, to the homage to Ellington, to the contamination with other styles, and rhythms such as blues, even-8, samba-like, and of course swing up. The references to rhythms and atmospheres, which belong to the tradition of the great Afro-American jazz, are explicit, as is the desire to see jazz from other points of view trying to increase the perspective of interpretation, which in New York is common practice; this is the city of energy and transformation.

"Midtown Walk" represents for the composer a transition to a more complex musical world, but also much more productive, the energy of this city, New York, is reflected in his music and his musicians and gives birth to something unique.

1. Dancing 05:35
2. Home 06:44
3. Bunch of Time 08:15
4. Number 9 05:33
5. 06/22 08:31
6. Travelers 07:32
7. Burgundy 45 05:15
8. Come Sunday 11:57

FRANCESCO AMENTA, tenor sax
CYRUS CHESTNUT, piano
GARY KERKEZOU, duble bass
KIMON KAROUTZOS,drums