Francesco Bearzatti
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Biography EN # FR

 FRANCESCO BEARZATTI

Narratore innamorato delle parole e capace di prodigiose innovazioni, straniero sempre e ovunque eppure profondamente italiano, musicista all’eterna ricerca dell’altro, attirato irresistibilmente dai processi rivoluzionari purché liberi e mutevoli e non rigidi, Francesco Bearzatti ha trascorso l’infanzia nella provincia friulana.

Con i coetanei ha condiviso i primi amori musicali, ascolti da rockettaro vero: Led zeppelin, Deep Purple, poi è arrivato il punk, Ramones, Sex Pistols e tutti gli altri. Diplomato in clarinetto al Conservatorio di Udine, Francesco approfondisce gli studi alla Jazz Mobile di New York con George Coleman.
Per molti anni si dedica alla musica rock e pop, per diverso tempo si esibisce nelle discoteche locali anche nelle vesti di dj e incide alcuni progetti di musica elettronica che segnano profondamente la sua corsa musicale: “ho suonato molta musica pop specie quando ero molto giovane. Ho suonato per cinque anni in discoteca, più o meno tutte le sere, lavorando con vari dj , e mi è capitato di registrare anche molta musica elettronica.
Questo tipo di situazioni rappresenta un’influenza ancora oggi molto evidente: fa parte del mio background e quando penso ai miei progetti, mi viene naturale andare a pescare anche nel mio passato extra-jazzistico”.
Tra le prime e più importanti esperienze formative è certamente il disco “live at vartan” – e conseguente tournée negli stati uniti – a nome del trombettista russo Valery Ponomarev nel quale si ritrova a suonare con il batterista Ben Riley, storico partner di Thelonious Monk. Forma nel 1994 il Kaiser Lupowitz trio, formazione legata al periodo veronese e composta da Enrico Terragnoli alla chitarra e Zeno

De Rossi alla batteria, che prende il nome da un investigatore privatore, personaggio inventato da Woody Allen per una short story, cui viene dato l’incarico di trovare Dio.
Di chiara ispirazione newyorkese, specie per quell’avanguardia che si stava consumando all’interno della Knitting Factory, il trio si contraddistingue per una profonda spinta folk, con mescolamenti vari con il klezmer e la musica indiana. Insieme registrano un paio di dischi: “Dommage” gode anche della partecipazione di Kurt Rosenwinkel alla chitarra; “you don’t!”, inciso al systems two studio di Brooklyn, vede affacciarsi Josh Roseman al trombone. Il primo disco da leader è intitolato “Suspended Steps”, inciso per la Caligola Records in quartetto con Paolo Birro al pianoforte, Marc Abrams al contrabbasso e Max Chiarella alla batteria. Il disco, pubblicato nel ’98 e formato da repertorio quasi totalmente originale, gode di un buon consenso di pubblico e della critica specializzata (in particolare sul magazine francese jazzman). Tuttavia il periodo seguente, gli anni trascorsi in Francia, a Parigi, segnano per Francesco l’apice della sua corsa artistica. Stringe un’ottima amicizia con aldo romano e partecipa alle registrazioni di “Because of Bechet”. Proprio in quell’occasione incontra Emmanuel Bex, virtuoso suonatore di organo. I tre formano il Bizart Trio capeggiato da francesco e registrano “Virus” per l’Auand Records di marco valente (2002) e replicano due anni più tardi con “Hope” nel quale compare anche Enrico Rava. Nel 2003 viene votato miglior nuovo talento al top jazz indetto dalla rivista specializzata musica jazz.
Tra le molte collaborazioni, sicuramente di rilievo è quella con Giovanni Mazzarino. Francesco prende parte a diverse incisioni sia del quartetto che del quintetto del pianista siciliano, da “plays ballads” del 1999 a “live allo spasimo” del 2003,suona con T. Harrell, R. Brecker e molti altri.

Prende parte al nuovo disco di Gianluca Petrella “indigo 4” per la Blue Note ed è tra i protagonisti del quintetto di Stefano Battaglia con il quale ha già inciso un disco-tributo a Pier Paolo

Pasolini. Sempre per Auand Records incide con i Sax Pistols “Stolen Days” (formazione nella quale lo affiancano Stomu Takeishi al basso elettrico e Dan Weiss alla batteria. Dopo aver partecipato al secondo disco dell’indigo 4, nel febbraio del 2008 viene pubblicato dalla parco della musica records il disco “tinissima”, lavoro interamente dedicato alla figura di tina modotti e concepito con la tromba di Giovanni Falzone e la ritmica formata da Danilo Gallo e Zeno De Rossi, questo è considerato uno dei lavori più interassanti del 2008.
Vince nell’ambito del referendum top jazz 2009, indetto dalla rivista musica jazz, il premio come “strumentista dell’anno sezione ance“.
Miglior musicista europeo 2011 accademie jazz francaise.
Nel 2010 “x (suite for malcolm)“ viene premiato come “miglior disco dell’anno“ nel top jazz 2010 e come miglior album in italia da jazzitaward.
Miglior ancia 2011 referendum musica jazz e miglior sax tenore jazz it awards. In Francia collabora con Luis Sclavis, J.Pierre Como ed entra a far parte del 5tetto di Henri Texier con il quale incide Canto Negro. Nel 2011 esce per CAM Jazz il disco Monknroll che in Francia avrà un enorme successo e portera il 4tetto in tour mondiale. Esce 4 anni dopo “ This Machine Kills Facists”, omaggio a Woody Ghutrie e nell’ Ottobre 2020 esce per CamJazz l’album “Zorro”: nel centenario della creazione di Zorro, il sassofonista Francesco Bearzatti e il suo tinissima Quartet presentano l’ultimo contributo al vasto e spettacolare panorama jazz. Zorro è una favolosa Suite in cui trovano posto grandi temi di respiro cinematografico, interludi romantici, ampi paesaggi e inseguimenti movimentati.

DISCOGRAFIA LEADER

Bearzatti Quartet   SUSPENDED STEPS

F.Bearzatti Bizart Trio   VIRUS (2002) HOPE (2006)

Bearzatti Sax Pistols   STOLEN DAYS (2005)

Bearzatti Tinissima SUITE FOR T.MODOTTI (2008)   X SUITE (2010) MONKNROLL (2012) THIS MACHINE KILLS FASCISTS (2015)  LIVE CASA DEL JAZZ (2016) ZORRO (2020)

Bearzatti The Bears LIVE IN FRANCE ( 2011)

Bearzatti A. Comisso   MI ILLUMINO DI SENSO (2014)

Bearzatti Martux Crew MY LOVE SUPREME (2015)

Bearzatti F. Casagrande LOST SONGS (2016)

Bearzatti Trio DEAR JOHN (2018)

 FRANCESCO BEARZATTI  – ENGLISH BIO

tenor & soprano sax, clarinet, electronics

Narrator and Innovator, everywhere a foreigner and yet profoundly Italian. A jazz musician irresistibly attracted to revolutionary processes in his eternal search for creating More.

More? Listen to Francesco Bearzatti’s Dear John (2019) and you’ll understand how. Much more than a tribute to John Coltrane’s mark on modern jazz and sax playing, it’s a love letter that pays homage to the legacy and goes beyond by introducing new and highly individual elements to the music … “Sometimes, originality lies in sincere imitation and then in a respectful questioning of tradition.” (Brian Morton)

Early days of Rock & testing the boundaries

Listening to rock and punk rock legends leaves an indelible influence on the young Bearzatti, growing up in the Friuli province of northern Italy. He devotes several years to rock and pop music, performing in local nightclubs and recording electronic music which continues to pervade a lot of his work. Graduate in clarinet Conservatory of Udine, Italy, he goes on to perfect his studies at Jazz Mobile, New York with George Coleman.

Among the first and formative experiences has got to be the album Live At Vartan (1995) and ensuing US tour with the first Russian trumpeter to make it on the American scene Valery Ponomarev and versatile drummer Ben Riley, best known for his work with Thelonious Monk. In 1994 Bearzatti forms the Kaiser Lupowitz Trio with Enrico Terragnoli on guitar and Zeno De Rossi on drums. Clearly inspired by New York, the Trio stands out for its deep folk drive and embarks on a journey “without limits” and marked by “a joy for experimentation and respect for tradition”. They record Dommage (1996) with guitarist Kurt Rosenwinkel and You Don’t! (1998) at the Systems Two Studio in Brooklyn with Josh Roseman.

Making his mark on the European scene

Suspended Steps (1998) is Bearzatti’s first album as lead musician and sets the tone for European success. Paolo Birro on piano, Marc Abrams on double bass and Max Chiarella on drums, it’s largely an original repertoire and includes tributes to Coltrane and Rollins. This album “leaves no room for doubt about what Bearzatti’s made of and is an inspiration to other emerging artists”. The public and critics like the French magazine JazzMan love it. The Narrator produces a dynamic balance between delicate lyricism in his theme and vigour in his solo pieces with an originality, yet incredible ease that by now had become his trademark.

Subsequent years spent in Paris mark a high point in Francesco’s career. He forms a great friendship with the versatile jazz and rock drummer Aldo Romano and contributes to Because of Bechet (2002). Even when collaborating with other musicians Bearzatti remains true to his style. He can enter in perfect symmetry with a band but always allows room for lyrical flights of genius, phrases on the verge of aphasia whilst remaining riveted to the basic melody. He meets the virtuoso organ player Emmanuel Bex and forms the Bizart Trio. The “multi-woodwind ace” man’s the helm on Virus (2003) and “undoes conventional organ-based trio fare with some cleverly devised arrangements to produce a wonderfully inventive outing indeed!” What’s the secret? In the thirst to produce More, Bearzatti leads the band in altering previously rendered motifs via cunning improvisational opuses, in concert with a silky-smooth edge. The Trio replicate the following year with Hope joined by the grand master of Italian jazz Enrico Rava.

Bearzatti’s talent is undisputed with the 2003 award Best New Talent by Top Jazz, a panel of Italian experts organised by the iconic magazine Musica Jazz. A string of awards follow suit and in 2011 he’s formally recognised at the European level as Best Musician by the French Académie du Jazz, one of the most prestigious awards in the world of jazz. Dubbed a versatile artist in his own right and a precious sideman.

Innovator at his best

Whilst mindful of the lessons from the great jazz masters which dominate his techniques, the dynamic musician from Udine Italy is never at a loss for venturing into new ground. Bearzatti’s projects are many and varied. It’s this very ability to combine his works with a versatile and restless culture that caught the eye of the Académie du Jazz. Experimentation is what he does best and on Gianluca Petrella’s Indigo 4 (2004) he helps the trombone player defy genre definitions and produce music that’s “fresh, bold, bizarre but effective, it’s the new style!” When he joins Giovanni Mazzarino’s Quartet he explores the hidden corners of the harmonic and rhythmic structure, playing with borderline accents and phrases without ever losing sight of the intention of the piece. He’s a member of the band committed to experimentation Licaones, offering an incredible balancing act between lounge acid jazz, blues, funk, touches of classic Hammond and Latin, not to mention jazz improvisation. As sideman he contributes to the outstanding playing on Giovanni Guidi’s Avec le Temps (2019) recorded with the biggest European jazz label ECM. Bearzatti continues his love of crossing borders with the man born with the piano accordion Carmine Ionanna.

Calling the award-winning Stolen Days (2016) a rock tribute is nothing short of an understatement, it’s much more. Under the guise of the Sax Pistols, Bearzatti is joined by Stomu Takeishi on electric bass and Dan Weiss on drums to produce “an intense, lively and visionary record.” Bearzatti knows how to introduce the listener to new scenarios where tradition, rethought with flair and autonomy, makes contact with contemporary tastes and sounds. This time the Innovator produces electronic effects that make his sax often unrecognisable: closer to an electric guitar than a reed instrument. Unconventional music runs its path between free, rock, ethnic and psychedelic scenarios with ease and effectiveness.

Narrator’s love of tributes

Bearzatti gives voice to his love for narration through his tributes. He leads the Tinissima Quartet with Giovanni Falzone on trumpet, Danilo Gallo on bass and Zeno De Rossi on drums and releases Suite for Modotti (2008), Suite for Malcolm (2010), Monk N Roll (2013) and This Machine Kills Fascists (2015). Each album takes you on a special journey, tells a story in a way that has Bearzatti’s mark all over them. The tribute to human rights activist Malcolm X summarises all the qualities of Bearzatti as a musician and especially a composer and band leader. His work narrates but does not celebrate. Rather than replicate music styles he opts for a language beyond the period in question. This ability to straddle the avant-garde and tradition has one reviewer raving, drawing comparisons with Charles Mingus and insisting that it deserves careful and repeated listening to appreciate its ability to be a complete work, at the crossroads of history and news, politics and culture. Small wonder Malcolm is awarded Best Album. Bearzatti’s interpretations are unique. Take the cleverly interlacing of Monk’s themes in Monk N Roll with some of the most popular songs in the history of rock. Or the transition between melancholy and vitality, blues folk and original inventions in This Machine to produce a strong statement about social inequalities and thereby deliver the vision of political activist and singer-songwriter Woody Guthrie.

Perfecting his art

Live album Lost Songs (2018) has jazz writer and critic Brian Morton hooked: “They simply have to be heard and it’s astonishing how music so calmly unassertive should be so commanding too. Bearzatti and Casagrande invite us in at the beginning and hold us right to the end.” The duo’s improvisation is described as a conversation of dance elements rendered with an almost mathematical elegance yet at the same time incapable of lending themselves to analysis. All compositions by the sax player and a perfect example of how method and creativity behind the Narrator and Innovator combine in the exploration of More.

Bearzatti perfects his art, and when he’s not producing albums, he’s touring the continents. Committed to supporting jazz in his homeland as a judge on the look out for budding musicians and he’s loyal to his fan base in person and on his official Facebook page.

Career Highlights

1° Prize “Best Tenor Player” Livorno 1996
2° Prize in Prato 1995 e with M.Abrams Four Rome 1995
1° Best New Talent Top Jazz 2003 (Italians Critics’ Pool)”Moret d’Aur ” 2008
1 Best Reed Top Jazz 2009
1 Best Record Top Jazz 2010 Musica Jazz
1 Best Band Top Jazz 2010 Musica Jazz
Premio della Critica Musica 2010 sezione Jazz
Jazz It Award 2010 best tenor player
Jazz it Award 2010 best album
Jazz It Award best cover
Premio Insound 2011 miglior fiato
Top Jazz 2011 miglior ancia
Prix du Musicien European 2011 Academie de Jazz

PERFORMANCE EXPERIENCE: GROUPS
Valery Ponomarev Universal Language, Charles Persip Orchestra, Kaiser Lupowitz Trio, Simone Guiducci Gramelot Ensemble, Fabio Morgera Quintet, Marc Abrams Four, The Organ Trio, Kepto Orchestra, C.C.Orcestra, Renato Chicco Quartet, Giovanni Mazzarino Quartet & Quintet, Third Eye Big Band, Gaetano Riccobono Quintet, Zero Orchestra, Bruno Cesselli Quartet, Andrea Massaria Quintet with Flavio Boltro, Pentagono, Gaetano Valli Quintet, G.Cazzola Quartet, Claudio Cusmano Quintet with Roberto Gatto, Beggio-Ciancaglini Quartet, Pietro Tonolo “Disguise” sestet, Aldo Romano “Because of Bechet”, H.Texier “Sud-Nord 4tet, S.Bollani “I Visionari”, Maria Pia De Vito “Songs From Underground”, G.Petrella “Indigo Four”

PERFORMANCE EXPERIENCE: FREELANCE
J.Lovano, B.Morris, D.Irvin, L.Parker, L.Hayes, R.Eubanks, B.Riley, T.Kirkpatrik, D.Bennet, K.Wheeler, R.Brecker, M.Murphy, M.Hendrix, G.Telesforo, P.Birro, S.Battaglia, J.Cartwight, P.Tonolo, M.Tonolo, K.Rosenwikel, M.Tamburini, L.Patruno, N.Stilo, F.Bosso, T.Harrell, E.Zigmund, B.Trotignon, L.Sclavis, H.Texier, J.P.Como, A.Menconi, A.Kell.