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The Band au Neon
trio started their activity, when three italian musicians living
in Copenhagen for various numbers of years, came together.
The music that comes from this meeting, is a wave of emotions, that
recall the love for their land, filtered by their common experience
of living abroad. The presence of the bandoneón (from which
the trio’s name is inspired) offers the unmistakable sounds
of the argentinian tango, but at the same time – thanks to
the unusuall constellation in which it is inserted - presents this
kind of music in a modern key.
Different flavors and musical frames underline the solistic skills
of the three elements in this unique combo, that melts into one
organic and solid musical unity, that is flexible to entertain the
audience under all sorts of different circumstances: from the chamber
concert, completely acoustic, to the open stages performances with
amplification systems, in theaters, in clubs, in museums aswell
as in churches.
The different backgrounds of the three musicians (two from Abruzzi
and one from Sicily) flow directly in to their music, expanding
in a true explosion of colors and genuine italian fragrances.
The repertoire is mainly original but combined also with rearranged
versions of compositions of Astor Piazzolla, Enrico Pierannunzi
and others. Band au Neon have just published their first mini CD
and are going to perform in a series of appointments in Denmark
and Sweden during the winter/spring 2004.
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Band au Neon |
Paolo Russo: Piano and Bandoneòn
Born in Pescara, Italy, in 1969 and based in Copenhagen, Denmark
since 1996.
He started to play the piano at the age of 9. After leaving the
University, where he studied Architecture for 5 years, Paolo dedicated
himself completely to music. He is educated both in classical
music (Conservatorio L. D'Annunzio, Pescara, diploma year: 1993)
and in rhythmic music (“Rhythmic Music Conservatory”,
Copenhagen, diploma year: 2002). He has performed professionally
in Italy, Switzerland, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Greenland,
Germany, Belgium, England, Scotland, N. Ireland, Ireland and Russia.
He has also studied music in New York and Buenos Aires.
At the moment, Paolo Russo is leading the band “ALCHEMY”,
an acoustic trio - with Bo Stief on bass and Andrea Marcelli on
drums - which is occasionally extended into a sextet. In ALCHEMY,
Paolo expresses himself as a composer and an arranger. He is also
playing with the American gospel singer Etta Cameron and with
the Danish bassist Bo Stief in the band ONE SONG III. Paolo toured
Europe with EJYO (European Youth Jazz Orchestra) in July 2001.
Since moving to Denmark, he has collaborated, live and in the
studio, with many local and international artists, including Trine-Lise
Væring, Mads Vinding, Jon Balke, Lelo Nika, Bob Rockwell,
Thomas Blachman, Peter Danemo, Paolo Vinaccia, Fabrizio Mandolini,
Gianluigi Trovesi, Hawk, Monique, Millfield, Søs Fenger,
Arild Andersen, Palle Danielsson and Andrea Marcelli.
Paolo has also composed music for theatre plays in Copenhagen:
“Rejsen til i morgen” (with Kristoffer Rosing-Schow)
- Anemone Teatret - 2000, “Frimærkeballet” -
Bådteatret - 2001/2002 and "Pan" - Anemone Teatret,
2002.
In the fall 2001 Paolo discovered the bandoneón, which
he started including more and more in his productions and live
performances. During the summer and fall of 2002 he was the main
subject for the documentary film "The illogical instrument"
(a journey through the mysteries of the bandoneón), directed
by British movie director Arun Sharma, broadcast by national Danish
channel DR2 in May, 2003.
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Paolo Russo |
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Fabrizio Mandolini: Saxophones
Born in Italy 11th of June 1967, He has been active for more than
ten years in Italy as a session musician
(both live, studio, television and radio) accompanying famous artists/songwriters
like:
Roberto Vecchioni, Pierangelo Bertoli, Tiromancino, Alex Britti,
Luca Carboni, Buddy Miles, and Saturnino among others. Recently
graduated from the Rytmisk Musikkonservatorium (Soloist Line), Fabrizio
used his time at the conservatory to transform and develop his musicianship
and personal vocabulary incorporating his experience as a foreigner
in Scandinavia
He has also lived in Los Angeles playing in clubs and studying Sound
Engineering at the Musicians Institute (R.I.T.) in Hollywood, and
is now active on the Danish, Italian and Swedish scene as a session
musician and soloist developing his own projects.He has played and
recorded in Copenhagen with the following artists:
Aske Jacobi (DK), Bo Stieff (DK), Paolo Russo (ITA), Hawk (DK),
Debbie Cameron (USA),Horace Parlan (USA), Klavs Hovman (DK), Iain
Ballamy (UK), Andrea Marcelli (USA/ITA), Jarkko Hakala (FIN),Robert
Erlandsson (SWE), Monique (DK), Kristian Fredmark (SWE), Bjarne
Roupé (SWE), Arild Andersen (NOR), Palle Danielsson (SWE),Engqvist
Orkester (DK), Poul Reimann (DK), Niclas Campagnol (SWE), Kasper
Villaume (DK), others...
He has just completed his first project as bandleader La spiga,which
in Italian means ear of corn.
His music could be described as a successful encounter between his
own personal lyricism and the Nordic tone.
This Record attempts to create a Cultural Bridge between Italian
lyricism and the Scandinavian sense of space.
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Fabrizio Mandolini |
Francesco
Calì:
Piano and Accordion
Born in 1966 in Catania, he began as a child to play the accordion
and was soon performing on the musical scene.
At the age of 15, he started to study classical piano with Maria
Pia Seminara at the Classical Conservatory “V. Bellini”
in Catania (Italy), graduating in 1993.
After graduation, his increasing interest in composition and arrangement
led him to the study of classical composition, with Angela Giuffrida
and Giovanni Ferrauto at the Classical Conservatory “V. Bellini”
in Catania (Italy), from which he graduated in 2001.
As a composer and performer he is presently active in different
music genres (classical, jazz, pop, rock).
In 1994 he founded the group “Libertango”, that made
its first CD, Libertango, in 1999. For this record, Francesco Calì
wrote the arrangements and played accordion.
In the same year he played as a soloist in the Concierto para Bandoneon
(A. Piazzolla) with the “Utopia Orchestra”, conducted
by Bruno Tommaso.
Invited to the Biennale of young artists from Europe and Mediterranean
in 1999 (Rome), 2000 (Turin) and 2001 (Sarajevo), where he performed
as a soloist with the European Jazz Orchestra, conducted by Furio
Di Castri.
In 2000, as a composer, he won the international contest “Pépinières
Européennes pour Jeunes Artistes”, obtaining a scholarship
for Rytmisk Musikkonservatorium of Copenhagen, where he studied
arrangements for Big Band with Ole Kock Hansen.
In 2003 he participated in the last Franco Battiato's movie, Perduto
amor.
He has just won the 3rd prize in the international choir composer's
competition "Waterworks" (www.hymnia.dk)
Several of his works are now available on the internet site www.sheetmusicnow.com
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Francesco Calì |
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