TAPE 1
KOOL MARY LOU WILLIAMS 6'11"
THE MUSIC NEXT DOOR ROBERTO GATTO 4'46"
IL VALZER DELLA FONDERIA ALESSANDRO PRESTI 4'50"
SALON MALAGA MATTEO BORTONE 5'45"
FOUR STORIES ROBERTO GATTO 6'24"
CHERRY SONG ALESSANDRO PRESTI fragment
Conceived, recorded, and produced by Giulio Cesare Ricci
Recorded at the Auditorium Museo Piaggio in Pontedera (PI)
Recording date March 11, 2023
Valve microphones: Neumann U47, U48, M49
Mike pre-amplifiers, cables (line, microphone, supply): Signoricci
Photos by Stefano "Steve" Girolami
This album is part of the recordings that Giulio Cesare made for the concerts of fonè Music Festival Piaggio 2023, organized by himself.
The chosen location is the Piaggio Auditorium, located inside the famous Pontedera Museum, where Piaggio was born and where it continues to produce today.
The protagonists of FOUR STORIES are four great musicians led by an extraordinary leader, Roberto Gatto, the greatest Italian jazz drummer, accompanied by Alessandro Presti on trumpet, Matteo Bortone on double bass, and Alessandro Lanzoni on piano. Roberto Gatto has performed throughout Europe and the rest of the world with his own groups and with international artists. The groups that bear his name are characterized not only by an interesting exploration of timbres and impeccable playing technique, but also by a great warmth typical of Mediterranean culture. This undoubtedly makes Roberto Gatto one of the most interesting drummers and composers in Europe and the world. Among the pieces performed are many composed by the artists themselves: "The Music next door" by R. Gatto, "Il valzer della fonderia" by A. Presti, "Waver" by A. Lanzoni, and "Victoria Regia" by M. Bortone. The album is rounded out with two very special tracks by Mary Lou Williams and Gary Peacock.
For this recording, Giulio Cesare Ricci brought all his equipment, both analog (Ampex ATR 102 Electronic Tube Ampex Model 351-1965, 2 tracks, 1/2", 30fps modified by David Manley) and digital (Pyramix Recorder, dCS A/D and D/A converters).
This is because Giulio Cesare Ricci creates two masters for each recording: an analog master for vinyl and tape, and a DSD digital master for SuperAudioCD.
The mastering was done using the entirely analog, tube-based Signoricci system. A state-of-the-art system without sound manipulation, equalization, reverb, compression, or expansion... but with a natural sound and authentic timbre to best enhance the acoustics of the Piaggio Museum Auditorium. All this to create recordings characterized by technological refinement and aimed at recovering the original musical atmosphere. For this recording too, Ricci used the "field effect" recording technique... all this to allow the listener, on his home hi-fi system, to relive the live effect as if he had been present at the performance.
