Italian Jazz in New York

Following the concert of Italian pianist Alessandro Lanzoni, who performed at the Italian Cultural Institute on Tuesday June 4th along with bassist Ben Street and drummer Eric McPherson, two more Italian jazz concerts will take place later this month.

Giovanni Guidi

Bebo Ferra - Paolino Dalla Porta Duo

On June 11th, the Institute will host a piano solo by Giovanni Guidi, a young musician from Foligno, Umbria. Guidi, class of 1985, was discovered at a very young age by prominent jazz trompeter Enrico Rava, with whom he toured in 2017 and then again in November 2018. He has won several awards, including the “TOPJAZZ “ award by “Musica Jazz” magazine, as the best talent of 2007, and participated in many festivals both in Italy and abroad.

He recorded a couple of albums with Rava for the label ECM and in 2013 released his first album as leader titled “City of Broken Dreams.” His 2016 album “Ida Lupino,” which he recorded with Gianluca Petrella, Gerald Cleaver and Louis Sclavis was named “best Italian Jazz album 2016″ by the Musica Jazz Critic Poll.

The following week, on June 18th, the Bebo Ferra - Paolino Dalla Porta Duo will perform. Ferra is considered the most renowned Italian jazz guitarist, having collaborated with many prominent jazz musicians worldwide, and having won awards such as first prize at the Sulmona Jazz festival for the soundtrack of Daniele Maggioni’s film "Tutto bene" and best soundtrack at the Banff Film Festival for the movie "my tomorrow" by Marina Spada. He currently teaches at the Como Music Conservatory and holds a summer workshop at Nuoro Jazz.

Dalla Porta is among the most interesting and eclectic bassists of the Italian and European Jazz scene, combining various musical genres and jazz traditions from different parts of the world. He too has won several awards and composed movie soundtracks. He is part of the legendary band “Oregon” lead by Ralph Towner and teaches at the Piacenza Music Conservatory and leads summer workshops at Siena Jazz and Nuoro Jazz.

The two musicians first worked together in 1997 on a project by the "Centro Meridionale di Cultura Italiana" for a festival and found in jazz the common ground, through which they expressed their search of a new synthesis between European and Mediterranean roots. Both members of this acoustic duo use their strong and refined technical skills to produce poetic themes and create a dynamic and nuanced interplay between their instruments.