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Stefano Bollani

At the age of six, wanting to become a singer, Stefano Bollani would accompany himself on the family keyboard. A few years later, he recorded a cassette of himself singing and playing, which he sent to his idol Renato Carosone, along with a letter explaining his dream. Carosone replied advising him to listen to a lot of blues and jazz, and so Bollani did.

His first record was the second volume of the jazz encyclopaedia published by Fratelli Fabbri. At age 11, he enrolled at the Luigi Cherubini Conservatory of Florence, where he received his diploma in piano in 1993.

At age 15, he tread the boards professionally, playing mostly pop, at the same time studying under Luca Flores, Mauro Grossi, and Franco D'Andrea whose seminars he attended at Siena Jazz.

In 1996, he met Enrico Rava at the Teatro Metastasio in Prato who immediately invited him to play in Paris with him: "You're young, you don't have a family. Take the risk, give up pop and devote yourself full-time to the music you love." Taking Rava's advice, Bollani backed out of Jovanotti's tournée and flung himself into jazz, language of improvisation and freedom. His upswing was marked by rapid laps: from the important, and continuing collaboration with mentor Enrico Rava to his affirmation with a referendum held by Musica Jazz magazine (best new talent 1998); from directing his Orchestra del Titanic (with numerous concerts to its credit and two recordings for the Via Veneto label) to making records and performing tribute-shows to pop music of the past (Abbassa la tua radio with, among others, Peppe Servillo, Irene Grandi, Marco Parente, Elio from the Storie tese - and Guarda che luna! with Gianmaria Testa and Banda Osiris), right up to winning the Premio Carosone, usually awarded to singers, in September 2003 in Naples.

They caught on to Stefano Bollani even in Japan. Swing Journal, the country's most authoritative jazz publication, awarded him the New Star Award in 2003, the first time for a European musician. Besides his historic collaboration with Rava, he has played with countless others, including Richard Galliano, Gato Barbieri, Pat Metheny, Michel Portal, Phil Woods, Lee Konitz, Han Bennink, Paolo Fresu, and appeared on the world's most prestigious stages (from Umbria Jazz to the Montreal Festival, from Town Hall in New York to the Scala in Milan). His music often frequents irony, an evident characteristic of all of his work, some of it quite bizarre and offbeat, like Gnosi delle fanfole, a recording in which, along with songwriter Massimo Altomare, he set to music the surreal poetry of Fosco Maraini (1998), and Cantata dei pastori immobili, a sort of musical oratory for four voices, narrator and piano, on texts by David Riondino, published in a slip-case by Donzelli (2004). He has done four recordings for the French, Label Bleu: Les fleures bleues, 2002, a homage to writer Raymond Queneau, recorded with Americans Scott Colley on the bass and Clarence Penn on the drums, the solo recording Smat smat, 2003; Concertone, 2004, a composition for jazz trio and symphonic orchestra with the arrangements and direction of Paolo Silvestri and, finally, I Visionari, the first recording with his new quintet formed by Mirko Guerrini on the sax, Nico Gori on the clarinet, Ferruccio Spinetti on the double bass, and Cristiano Calcagnile on the drums. In 2003 he began playing with Danish musicians Jesper Bodilsen and Morten Lund, recording with them for Stunt Records, Mi ritorni in mente and, in 2005, Gleda, Songs from Scandinavia.

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Interview

Stefano Bollani: Il Gioco Della Vita

Read "Stefano Bollani: Il Gioco Della Vita" reviewed by Paolo Marra


Con istrionico disincanto Stefano Bollani rilegge, in una personale versione in Piano Solo, una delle opere rock più famose di sempre, “Jesus Christ Superstar," nel cinquantesimo anno dalla sua uscita. Il pianista in questo ultimo lavoro dal titolo Piano Variations on Jesus Christ Superstar, uscito il 3 aprile, si diverte a giocare con la materia musicale plasmandola intorno al suo tocco unico intriso di ironia e humour, con una particolare attenzione alle melodie lasciate intatte rispetto al resto del corpus ...

Album Review

Stefano Bollani Trio: Mediterraneo. Jazz at Berlin Philarmonic

Read "Mediterraneo. Jazz at Berlin Philarmonic" reviewed by Neri Pollastri


Il diciassettesimo disco per la serie Jazz at Berlin Philarmonic, diretta da Siggi Loch e pubblicata dalla ACT, sposta l'attenzione dal jazz centro e nord europeo per mettere a fuoco l'Italia. Protagonista della serata documentata su disco, il 12 Giugno 2017, era Stefano Bollani, alla testa del suo “trio danese," ma affiancato anche dal talentuoso fisarmonicista francese Vincent Peirani e da quattordici archi e fiati membri dei Berliner Philarmoniker, diretti da Geir Lysne, che curava anche gli arrangiamenti. ...

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Album Review

Stefano Bollani: Que Bom

Read "Que Bom" reviewed by Matt Hooke


The worlds of Italian and Brazilian music meet on Que Bom, pianist Stefano Bollani's masterful 43rd album. Bollani lets his songwriting do the brunt of the work, leading to an accessible project, that still shimmers with inventive moments. Bollani has a keen melodic sense that makes these songs immediately come alive. The opening song, “Sbucata da Una Nuvola," is a beautiful display of Bollani's talents with a two-part melody that begins with quick single notes before moving to chord changes ...

Live Review

Stefano Bollani Que Bom all'Estate Fiesolana

Read "Stefano Bollani Que Bom all'Estate Fiesolana" reviewed by Neri Pollastri


Stefano Bollani Que Bom Estate Fiesolana Teatro Romano Fiesole 10.7.2018 A distanza di dieci anni dalla precedente immersione nella musica brasiliana con Carioca, Stefano Bollani convoca nuovamente tre dei suoi compagni di allora --Jorge Helder Rodrigues al contrabbasso, Jurim Moreira alla batteria e Armando Marçal alle percussioni --e aggiunge un altro percussionista --Thiago da Serrinha --per tingere di giallo-oro una musica perlopiù della sua penna. A differenza di quel lontano ...

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Live Review

Stefano Bollani al Parco della Musica di Roma

Read "Stefano Bollani al Parco della Musica di Roma" reviewed by Mario Calvitti


Stefano Bollani Parco della Musica Roma 15.10.17 Anche se inserito nella programmazione dell'Auditorium come una anteprima del prossimo Roma Jazz Festival, è difficile considerare un concerto di piano solo di Stefano Bollani semplicemente come un concerto jazz. A riprova, basterebbe il tutto esaurito nella sala e le lunghissime file alla biglietteria nella speranza di accaparrarsi uno degli ultimi posti disponibili per rendersi conto che il pubblico accorso in massa non è quello abituale del jazz. ...

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In Pictures

Stefano Bollani at Asti Musica 2017

Read "Stefano Bollani at Asti Musica 2017" reviewed by Nicola Sacco


The 22nd edition of Astimusica featured a solo piano concert by Stefano Bollani. More than a traditional piano concert, his “one man show" with no playlist was a tribute to the art of improvisation. Covering Bach to the Beatles, from Stravinsky to Brazilian rhythms, with sudden incursions into pop or in the Italian repertoire, it was a flow of musical consciousness, humor, and emotion. Keeping with the spirit of the concert, the audience requested the encore songs with Bollani presenting ...

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Live Review

Time in Jazz 2015: "Ali"

Read "Time in Jazz 2015: "Ali"" reviewed by Libero Farnè


Berchidda e Nord Sardegna 8-16.08.2015 “Ali" era il titolo della ventottesima edizione di Time in Jazz. «Parlando di “Ali" -afferma il direttore artistico Paolo Fresu -il nostro pensiero non poteva non andare all'Icaro di Henry Matisse, raffigurato in una delle venti lastre che compongono il libro “Jazz," che diviene protagonista e musa ispiratrice dell'artista. Un festival leggero e volatile dunque, composto da un'infinità di piccoli tasselli. Nello specifico, il tema di questa edizione viene affrontato in parte ...

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Contest

Enter the "Stefano Bollani - Joy in Spite of Everything" Giveaway!

Enter the "Stefano Bollani - Joy in Spite of Everything" Giveaway!

Source: All About Jazz

All About Jazz members are invited to enter the ECM Records “Stefano Bollani - Joy in Spite of Everything“ giveaway contest starting today. We'll select FIVE winners at the conclusion of the contest on November 4th. Click here to enter the contest (Tracking Stefano Bollani at AAJ automatically enters you in the contest.) Good luck! Your Friends at ECM Records About Joy in Spite of Everything With Joy in Spite of Everything – an album of new compositions ...

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Performance / Tour

Enrico Rava, Stefano Bollani, ECM Celebrate "Umbria Jazz at Birdland"

Enrico Rava, Stefano Bollani, ECM Celebrate "Umbria Jazz at Birdland"

Source: All About Jazz

As part of a six-night “Umbria Jazz at Birdland" Festival the great Italian trumpeter, Enrico Rava, will return to New York with his quintet for two nights at Birdland March 30th and 31st. Also as part of this celebration of the most prestigious names in Italian Jazz, Stefano Bollani is stepping out with his own trio with Jesper Bodilsen & Morten Lund. Long mentored by Rava, Bollani appeared on both of the master trumpeter's last two ECM recordings: the 2004 ...

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Music Industry

Enrico Rava and Stefano Bollani, Third Man

Enrico Rava and Stefano Bollani, Third Man

Source: Jazz on 3 - BBC Radio 3


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