Search - Gianmaria Testa :: La Valse d'un Jour

MUSICA CHE OLTREPASSA I CONTORNI DELLA LINGUA...

Larry L. Looney | Austin, Texas USA | 10/11/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"...music that transacends the boundaries of language. In truth, much of the international music that I have been blessed to hear does just that - I rarely feel at such a disadvantage if I don't understand the words that I don't enjoy the music. This recording is truly, firmly, in that category - the beauty and feeling of these songs is conveyed even if the listener is not fluent in Italian (or French, in the case of the final track, a poem by French writer/poet Jean Claude Izzo).The cover caught my eye, and, picking up the disc to examine it, I saw the instrumentation on the back of the booklet: Gianmaria Testa (voice and guitars), Pier Mario Giovannone (guitar, mélodica) - the songs are presented utterly uncluttered. I gave the disc a listen in the store, and I was immediately hooked. Testa's sense of melody (he wrote or co-wrote all of the songs) is inspired - his voice reminds me a bit of Leonard Cohen, perhaps a bit more melodic (and that's NOT a criticism of Cohen). There are five poems scattered among the eighteen tracks here - except for the one by Izzo mentioned above, all of them are by Pier Mario Giovannone. They fit into the program beautifully - one is never left with the feeling they were added as an afterthought.Most of the selections on this recording have appeared on other released by Testa - but not in the form in which they are presented here. Rather than being left with the feeling of a compilation - usually the songs on a collection like that feel disconnected from one another - I immediately felt as if I was sitting in on two old friends playing favorites with each other. The two guitarists play as if they are joined in mind and spirit - which they no doubt are, musically speaking. They each exhibit breathtaking fluidity and dexterity - always in the best of taste. I can't recall hearing a single passage - I've listened to this cd several times over the past three days - that comes across as overplayed or unnecessary. This is one of the most perfectly arranged performances I've ever heard. In his introductory notes in the booklet (unfortunately, the only English there - I'd love to read English translations of the lyrics, despite their sheer beauty in Italian), Richard Robert states that this album (the title of which was also used forty years ago for a recording by Johnny Mathis) `...could just as well have been...OPEN FIRE, TWO GUITARS.' This is a very accurate statement, but one shouldn't be misled into thinking that the musicianship displayed here is about power - their techniques are stunning, but this is all about taste and beauty.I feel very fortunate to have stumbled across this recording before any of Testa's other works - I have a feeling I've found the very one I would appreciate the most, although I certainly plan to look into the earlier ones. He has a brand new release out this month (October 2003) in Italy, ALTRE LATITUDINI - hopefully, it won't be too long before it's available in the US. I definitely want to hear more from him."

Ciaro & dolce

Maddalena | United States | 09/27/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This is my favorite modern Italian cd. Gianmaria is a singer/songerwriter and his deep, scratchy voice is wonderful. Try this cd out if you are learning Italian, because he kindly supplies the words in italian and english, and you can sing along!"