A number of unusual and small groups (solo, duo, trio) started to appear on the scene of improvised music during the 60s and 70s. This type of ensemble immediately won popularity not only because of the ease of its management, but primarily because it presented ample opportunity for the members to develop original and stimulating situations, allowing each performer to express himself without being too bound to the typical role of his instrument. In the Jazz scene of former years, apart from pianists, we see only a few examples of musicians dedicated to solo improvisation; among them, we find Coleman Hawkins and Eric Dolphy.
I mention Jazz because it is the mother of improvised music in Europe, although we can point to many different fathers of other genres (ethnic, baroque, contemporary, entertainment music). This is one of the reasons why the typical question of the past years, "Is this real Jazz or not", slowly faded out (among the most famous academic discussions, we remember those of Parker, Coltrane, and Coleman).
Today we are moving between the revival of the informal and rather tramp "free radicals" and the sensible, integrated artists who "do not dirty the ground". Fortunately, the Actis Dato-Dini duo is far from these extreme categories, but their music has the positive features of improvisation with different degrees of freedom and, at the same time, of a meditated and structured creation. The CD is ruled by a balance that in some cases is the consequence of simple and plain schemes, but which is always the result of a positive interaction and of the happy combination of the two musicians. The outcome is varied, enjoyable and exquisite, with echoes of many cultures; it is a free music which does "not dirty the ground". |
