Italian jazz and rock artist Fabrizio Fedele will be performing in Malta accompanied by Roberto Giangrande and Davide Ferrante. He tells Ramona Depares about the influences that shaped his music and the challenges of his genre.
How did the band get together and how long have you been performing?
The band was born almost 14 years ago. At that time, we all were involved in a couple of other projects. The bass player and I worked together on tour with a rock band named Kenny Mc Cormick. It was the time in which I started writing music for my first solo album, The Invisible Part of Me, which I released on Afrakà Records in 2002.
Then, Corrado Calignano, the original bass player, introduced me to Dave Ferrante and we started to rehearse together. The chemistry was there from the start. Today, when Corrado is busy with other projects, we play with a great guest musician, Roberto Giangrande, as we are doing for the current tour.
Is this your first time in Malta? How did your performance come about?
Yes, it will be my first time on the island. For this performance I have chosen a set list with tracks from all my seven recordings. They’re all very evocative for me.
What are some of your earliest music influences, and how have these affected your music?
My influences are very different. I fell in love with Pat Metheny when I was 14 and I remember at that time I was mad for Ozzy and Van Halen. But, at the same time, I also listened to Bach and Paco de Lucia, particularly as my academic roots are at a classical conservatory. I could go on for hours about the millions of artists who have captured my soul, from Miles Davis, David Bowie, Tom Waits and Mark Lanegan to my first love, Pino Daniele. Incidentally, our own Roberto is one of the first bassists who played with Pino in the early 1980s.
What got you interested in jazz and how did you decide to amalgamate it with rock?
I didn’t decide at all. It happened organically, thanks to all the influences I just mentioned. Music did the rest. All the stuff I listened to in the past, together with the music I listen to today, forms my music.
Probably it is a little difficult to fall in love with this particular music, because it is instrumental and it needs more attention than pop songs
What are the challenges of this genre? Would you say that it’s a popular one?
I don’t know if this kind of genre is popular or not. Probably it is a little difficult to fall in love with this particular music, because it is instrumental and it needs more attention than pop songs. Often, words go straight to the heart more rapidly. That’s the difference, I think.
You started out by making music for theatre and then moved on to the stage and studio. How did the progression come about?
The Fabrizio Fedele TrioI actually started out playing in clubs, touring with a number of famous Italian artists, like Aleandro Baldi, the Schola Cantorum, and Gigi Finizio. Then, through a combination of events, I started writing music for theatre, mostly thanks to a very good friend of mine, a director who asked me to write some stuff for his first short movie. He liked my work, and so a long-term collaboration was born.
How has your sound evolved since you officially started performing with a regular trio?
This is the challenge. I try not to put any mental boundaries, to keep writing music directly from my brain. Sometimes the result is a little on the rock side, at others it seems a little jazzy.
You are also a published author. Do you consider yourself a musician or a writer, first and foremost? And which art form gives you most satisfaction?
Both. Obviously, music is my first love, but I like to consider myself as a writer. In fact, just today I’ve had some good news from my new editor: my next novel will be out soon, probably at the end of this year. You are the first to know this!
In 2014 you released Il Sole Risplende in Indocina. How has the recording been received?
Very warmly. This CD is the very first rebirth after I had an accident with my bike in 2011. So those compositions were particularly full of gratitude and happiness.
You are involved in a lot of different projects. What can you tell us about them?
In March I will release an album called Stream of Consciousness, which are seven tracks recorded in one long take. No overdubs and no written tunes. I just played with another guitarist, Gen Cotena, shoulder to shoulder, one track following the other. We did not correct anything at all, it’s a flow of music straight from our souls – yes, noises and mistakes included. And at the end of the year my new album will see the light. We are just recording the last two tracks with a bunch of musicians and then I’ll start the mixing.
What do you consider as some of the highlights of your musical career so far?
In 2007, I started playing with one of the most famous Italian rock-prog bands, Osanna. I toured with the band for six years, reaching Japan, Mexico, Korea, China and, of course, Italy. Thanks to Osanna I have had the privilege to work and record CDs with musicians like David Jackson, T.M. Stevens, David Cross and many others who gave me a lot of experiences and their friendship.
What can we expect from your concert in Malta?
It’s always so difficult to answer this question. All I can say is that we are going to play with the same enthusiasm that we had when we were teens. So, you can expect a concert full of love. Promise.
• Fabrizio Fedele Trio Live is being held on Saturday at Ir-Razzett l-Aħmar, Attard. Doors open at 9pm and tickets are available online.
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