TRACK LIST

  1. É doce morrer no mar (Caymmi)
  2. Carinhoso (Pixinguinha)
  3. Samba da minha terra/Vestido de bolero (Caymmi)
  4. Rosa (Pixinguinha) feat. Nicola Stilo
  5. Samba e amor (Chico Buarque) feat. Nicola Stilo
  6. Beatriz (Edu Lobo) feat. Nicola Stilo
  7. Madalena (Ivan Lins) feat. Eddy Palermo
  8. Flor de lis (Djavan) feat. Eddy Palermo

The idea for this album first came to our mind in May 2020, just when the world was opening again to hope. In the following months we struggled, however, to find suitable ways to meet for rehearsals and create that ‘BRIZA sound’ we were looking for. But we were determined and we insisted.

Therefore, when we finally met to record the album in February 2021, the recording imbibed our pleasure of being together again to play our music in such an inspiringly location as Enrico Furzi’s recording studio La Strada, at the outskirts of Rome, sorrounded by a stunningly green scenario.

There and then, Madalena’s voice travelled within a soundscape created by Stefano Nencha’s agile and sophisticated guitar, Stefano Nunzi’s centred and swift six-string bass*, and Alessandro Marzi’s mesmerizing  and ever surprising percussions, a soundscape that we would like to call our Brazil.

Nicola Stilo and Eddy Palermo played with us. An honour and an immense joy: a journey within the journey of performers of genius.

Production: Maddalena Pennacchia (Skylark Project) – Publisher: AlfaMusic Label (to be released by autumn 2021)
*Liuteria Biarnel

Mainly self-taught, she has come back to singing under her former stage name, Madalena, after years of silence; in her life, she was lucky enough to meet musicians of great talent from whom she has learned a lot. Yesterday, Irio De Paula taught her how to listen to the voices of Brazil and love them. Today, Gretchen Parlato is inspiring her to seek her most authentic voice.

Stefano Nencha began as a self-taught guitarist, he then studied music at the Scuola Popolare di Musica di Donna Olimpia and the Scuola Popolare di Musica del Testaccio; he perfectioned his jazz technique and improvisation with Fabio Zeppettella. He has attended numerous workshops held by musicians of the calibre of Peter Bernstein, Adam Rogers, Steve Grossman, and Barry Harrys. He has collaborated with Dino and Franco Piana and, among others, with Massimo Pirone, with whom he has recorded a number of albums. He has performed at various jazz festivals and theatre shows, playing in prestigious venues, including the Arena di Verona. Since 2000 he has been teaching jazz guitar at Officine Musicali del Borgo, in Rome.

Alessandro Marzi graduated in drums and percussions at the Conservatorio di Santa Cecilia. He attended his post-graduate jazz drumming course with Fabrizio Sferra and took part in seminars and masterclasses with Gary Chaffee and Peter Erskine. Nicola Stilo, his teacher at the Testaccio School,asked him to join his groups. In 2006 he was in Dom Famularo and Antonio Sanchez’s masterclass in New York. He has recorded more than twenty albums. His collaborations with national and international musicians of great calbre are countless, from Marcello Rosa to Bill Smith. He mainly plays jazz, although he frequently explores other musical languages. He performed in live concerts in Italy, Spain Belgium France Bulgaria Japan Finland Norway, Sweden Brazil Africa; he participated in RAI Radiotelevisione Italian broadcasts, both in Italy and abroad, where he played from Jazz to classical, to ‘pop’ music.

Double bass and electric bass player, Stefano Nunzi earned his degree in double bass with Alfredo Trebbi (1998) and in jazz in 2004. He studied with Palle Daniellson, Furio di Castri and Pietro Ciancaglini. In 2000 he moved to Rome where, following his vocation, he came into the Capitoline Jazz scene. He boasts collaborations with Italian and international artists such as Joe Lovano, Maurizio Giammarco, Stefano di Battista, Pietro Lussu, Daniele Scannapieco, Amii Stewart, Giovanni Amato, Carlo Atti, Antonella Aprea, Emanuele Basentini, Walter Blending, Vincent Harring, Aldo Bassi, Carlo Conti, Tiziano Ruggeri, Vince Benedetti, Mario Raja, Marcello Rosa, Milcho Leviev, Max Ionata, Enrico Bracco, Luca Mannutza, Lorenzo Tucci, Eddy Palermo, Luca Velotti, Daniele Tittarelli, Nicola Conte, Andrea Nunzi, Alice Ricciardi and many others. He has performed abroad in France, England, Argentina, Croatia, South Africa, Egypt, Tunisia, Switzerland, Poland, Sweden, Finland, Russia, Ukraine, Spain, Austria.