Michelangelo Scandroglio - Gently Broken (2024) [Hi-Res]

Just a few years after his first album as a leader and composer, “In the Eyes of the Whale” (Auand Records, 2020), was released, the young Italian double bassist Michelangelo Scandroglio adds a new and crucial piece to his work.

“With this band and this album,” Scandroglio says, “I tried to combine my old values with my more recent interests, trying to understand how music production can fit into the inner workings of improvisation and composition. There is a slight departure from my previous album and from improvisation as a solo moment, as well as a deviation from melody – which is no longer the focal point. I believe that the main characteristic of this new recording is the search for a ‘synthesis’, as the duration of the tracks also shows: compared to most jazz pieces, they are unusually short. I tried to recreate ‘micro-worlds,’ brief independent moments that then come together. Even if they appear as musically far from each other, they are actually moving towards a common destination.”

This explains why the band accompanying Scandroglio brings together strong personalities with a rich background in both improvised music and music production. In addition to the leader (electric bass, double bass), the band includes Luca Zennaro (guitar), Rupert Cox (piano, synth), and Luiz Vinoza (drums, electronics), along with a diverse group of guests, including Francesco Panconesi (tenor saxophone), Liselotte Östblom (voice), and Christos Stylianides (trumpet).

Released by Auand Records in its fluid series,

“The creation process,” Scandroglio explains, “is very similar to what a sculptor does when approaching a block of marble. Through chisel and sweat, the artist extracts both the idea and the matter. Similarly, a refinement process has followed the raw studio recordings, aimed at extracting the heart of this music. It’s a subtraction process. The sculpture – in this case, the music – already exists. The artist must extract it and also transform it during the creative process. It’s a long journey, one that always includes change of plans and direction. I tried to reenact, as much as I could, the process adopted by the likes of Pablo Picasso or the Beatles. In my opinion, there is no ‘ultimate good idea’ at the beginning of the creative process. Rather, there are several layers of transformations: the original idea keeps evolving, until its final shape, and it’s also constantly changed by every single gaze and mood of those who observe, or – in this case, those who listen.”

Tracklist:
1.01 - Michelangelo Scandroglio, Rupert Cox, Luca Zennaro, Luiz Vinoza - Extraction (2:15)
1.02 - Michelangelo Scandroglio, Rupert Cox, Luca Zennaro, Luiz Vinoza - Premonition (2:14)
1.03 - Michelangelo Scandroglio, Rupert Cox, Luca Zennaro, Luiz Vinoza - Deduction (2:05)
1.04 - Michelangelo Scandroglio, Rupert Cox, Luca Zennaro, Luiz Vinoza - Jazzneverdie (2:24)
1.05 - Michelangelo Scandroglio, Rupert Cox, Luca Zennaro, Luiz Vinoza, Liselotte Östblom - The Princess Of Breaking Shadows (2:24)
1.06 - Michelangelo Scandroglio, Rupert Cox, Luca Zennaro, Luiz Vinoza - Unexpected Breakthrough (0:50)
1.07 - Michelangelo Scandroglio, Rupert Cox, Luca Zennaro, Luiz Vinoza - Danubio/Insight (4:11)
1.08 - Michelangelo Scandroglio, Rupert Cox, Luca Zennaro, Luiz Vinoza - Addition (2:40)
1.09 - Michelangelo Scandroglio, Rupert Cox, Luca Zennaro, Luiz Vinoza - Deconstruction (2:57)
1.10 - Michelangelo Scandroglio, Rupert Cox, Luca Zennaro, Luiz Vinoza - Subtraction (2:04)
1.11 - Michelangelo Scandroglio, Rupert Cox, Luca Zennaro, Luiz Vinoza - You-er Than You (3:04)
1.12 - Michelangelo Scandroglio, Rupert Cox, Luca Zennaro, Luiz Vinoza - The Space Through The Process (2:35)
1.13 - Michelangelo Scandroglio, Rupert Cox, Luca Zennaro, Luiz Vinoza - Disruption (3:12)
1.14 - Michelangelo Scandroglio, Rupert Cox, Luca Zennaro, Luiz Vinoza - Joined Forces In Extended Spirits (3:06)