Import CD – AU3005 – Skylark – Domenico Cartago

Notes

An album of memories, from childhood to jazz classics in “Skylark”, Domenico Cartago’s recording debut

The Italian musician makes his first appearance on Auand Piano Series leading his trio, featuring Luca Alemanno and Mimmo Campanale

A Sunday morning. A jaunt. A kid listening to a skylark. The silent, peaceful joy of an outdoor moment in the countryside, combined with the call of a bird becoming more and more familiar, day by day. Years later, the colors of this scene might have been faded by time, but its sound is still crystal clear. That call has been turned into sound material, its melody and rhythm ready to be explored. On that sound, the idea of an entire recording has been built. This is how young Italian pianist Domenico Cartago’s debut album, “Skylark” – out now on Auand Piano Series – was born. The ability of going back to chldihood memories and work on those sounds with an improviser’s mindset is one of those things that make this release unique and personal. Cartago-led trio, featuring Luca Alemanno (double bass) and Mimmo Campanale (drums), works like an album of memories, ranging from jazz standards (“Au Privave”, “Bouncing With Bud”) to memorable ballads (“Naima”, “My Romance”) and one original composition (“Nina”). It might sound as an obvious choice for a young, self-taught musician who grew up in a family that loved Duke Ellington and Bill Evans – as well as jaunts. The bird-inspired title reflects way more than a connection to a younger self. “Some studies – the piano player explains – on skylark tweeting structure have found an alternation of free and repeated phrases. What struck me the most were the polyrhythms that sometimes originate here and there.” To him, this bird is the actual metaphor of jazz – its dizzying vertical flight, as high as its hidden strength can reach, with a crescendo-like call, and then a fast, closed-wing nosedive to the ground, followed by a new flight, and a new call. That is the true symbol of human, physical, and creative effort, which is at the core of jazz consciousness – something the founding fathers of this music have made legendary.