La Giusta Distanza

La Giusta Distanza grew out of the confinement of the pandemic when Tuscan organetto (diatonic accordion) maestro Tesi composed most of these tracks. They retain an imaginative Mediterranean mood in the background, but synthesise his all-round musical passions, sometimes pushing him out of the comfort zones of his celebrated Banditaliana quartet or previous accordion wizardry partnerships.

Elastic Trio guitarist Vieri Sturlini and percussionist Francesco Savoretti back him. He’s also joined by a cast of renowned instrumentalists and singers, resulting in a high-quality set of nine instrumentals plus three songs.

Tesi’s strong melodic sense highlights the vivid, jazzy-inflected opener, ‘Santiago’, a homage to St James, the Galician city patron saint shared with his hometown, Pistoia. ‘Tindari’ is a pulsating tarantella where the call of a Sicilian street fruit seller weirdly pops up. It follows ‘Valzer d’Aprile’, a serene and enchanting dancing melody. Further delights come on ‘Couscous e Fasol’, driven by Ziad Trabelsi’s oud till the organetto takes up the lead, while ‘La Bella Stagione’, co-composed with pianist Daniele Bagini, reveals a chamber music ambience with strings and piano interweaving with the accordion.

Elsewhere, Ginevra di Marco gives a thrilling rendition of Eugenio Bennato’s ‘Ballata di una Madre’. More tone colours are added on the thriving ‘Cicciabomba’, a sort of Scottish rock-hybrid featuring hurdy-gurdy, tzouras and musette bagpipe, and on the twisting ‘Bucarest’, augmented by marimba and nyckelharpa. The closing reflective ‘Tema di Cristina’ is a tribute to a late artist friend, displaying a deep dialogue between organetto and piano. Brimful of ideas, this is a classy and superbly performed album.