40 gir 1977-2017
Author: Ciro De Rosa
View album and artist detailsAlbum and Artist Details
Artist/band: |
Tre Martelli |
Label: |
Felmay |
Magazine Review Date: |
December/2017 |
This Piedmont outfit, led by Enzo G Conti, mark their 40th anniversary here, presenting 21 rarities and live recordings, celebrating their tenure as a presence in Italy's north-west traditional music. A career with a few line-up changes has resulted in a dozen records, some of them first-rate.
Tre Martelli draw upon documents from song and music collectors both local and from across their nation. They have favoured a down-to-earth attitude in their playing – rough-hewn in the old days but more creative and skilled in recent years, always paying attention to fine melodies, subtle timbres and tones. The distinctive sound of hurdy-gurdy creates a sonically interesting mix with plucked strings, fiddles, melodeons, flutes, bagpipes, touches of piano and percussion. The vocalists have varied, with Betti Zambruno, a leading figure in the Piedmont folk scene, being today's main female singer while Chacho Marchelli provides a baritone voice.
This album is a compilation of various dance tunes and ritual and narrative songs. Some are in the old mode, such as the ‘Scottish/Perigurdino’ dances; others have newer arrangements, like the ballad ‘Baron Litron’. Another highlight is ‘Sbrando dell’oca', featuring jazz accordion maestro Gianni Coscia. Elsewhere, in the ballad ‘Prinsi Raimund’, we hear the remarkable pairing of two live recordings, made 38 years apart.
Tre Martelli draw upon documents from song and music collectors both local and from across their nation. They have favoured a down-to-earth attitude in their playing – rough-hewn in the old days but more creative and skilled in recent years, always paying attention to fine melodies, subtle timbres and tones. The distinctive sound of hurdy-gurdy creates a sonically interesting mix with plucked strings, fiddles, melodeons, flutes, bagpipes, touches of piano and percussion. The vocalists have varied, with Betti Zambruno, a leading figure in the Piedmont folk scene, being today's main female singer while Chacho Marchelli provides a baritone voice.
This album is a compilation of various dance tunes and ritual and narrative songs. Some are in the old mode, such as the ‘Scottish/Perigurdino’ dances; others have newer arrangements, like the ballad ‘Baron Litron’. Another highlight is ‘Sbrando dell’oca', featuring jazz accordion maestro Gianni Coscia. Elsewhere, in the ballad ‘Prinsi Raimund’, we hear the remarkable pairing of two live recordings, made 38 years apart.
