Search - Italian Instabile Orchestra :: Litania Sibilante

The Italian Instabile Orchestra (IIO) is a brash and brilliant big band whose ranks include saxophonists Gianluigi Trovesi, Eugenio Colombo, and Mario Schiano, trumpeter Pino Minafra, trombonist Giancarlo Schiaffini, and cellist Paolo Damiani--the cream of Italy's jazz cappuccino. The IIO's music is more avant-garde than mainstream, but don't let that scare you. These cats communicate musical freedom and anarchy in a much more accessible and humorous way than their comrades in Germany and Holland. Sure, there's dissonance here, but the ensemble's repertoire--as multifaceted as the diverse musical traditions and experiences its members bring to the bandstand--covers a cinematic scope of styles and moods. The extended performances on this CD, their fourth, range from Trovesi's infectious "Scarlattina," inspired partly by the joyous dances of his native Bergamo region, to the urban funk of trumpeter Alberto Mandarini's "M 42" to Minafra's hilarious "Herr Fantozzi," a manic piece that evokes the antics historically associated with Neapolitan comedians. Schiaffini's arrangement of the standard "Lover Man" provides a perfect opportunity for Schiano to dissect the song's familiar theme with some highly original alto playing. --Mitchell Feldman