Enrico Rava (born 20 August 1939),[1] is an Italian jazz trumpeter. He started on trombone, then changed to the trumpet after hearing Miles Davis.[2]

Enrico Rava
Rava in Aarhus 2017
Rava in Aarhus 2017
Background information
Born (1939-08-20) 20 August 1939 (age 85)
Trieste, Italy
GenresAvant-garde jazz
OccupationMusician
InstrumentTrumpet
Years active1960s–present
LabelsBlack Saint, ECM, Soul Note, Label Bleu, Philology, CAM Jazz, Duck
Websitewww.enricorava.com

Career

edit

He was born in Trieste, Italy.[1]

 
Enrico Rava in 2005

His first commercial work was as a member of Gato Barbieri's Italian quintet in the mid-1960s;[2] in the late 1960s he was a member of Steve Lacy's group.[1] In 1967, Rava moved to New York City and, one month later, became a member of the group Gas Mask, which had one album released on Tonsil Records in 1970.

In the 1970s and 1980s, he worked with John Abercrombie, Andrea Centazzo, Gil Evans, Richard Galliano, Joe Henderson, Joe Lovano, Pat Metheny, Michel Petrucciani, Cecil Taylor, and Miroslav Vitouš.[1] He has also worked with Carla Bley, Lee Konitz, Jeanne Lee, Paul Motian, and Roswell Rudd. Chiefly an exponent of bebop jazz, Rava has also played in avant-garde jazz settings.

With trumpeter Paolo Fresu, Rava recorded four albums on the influence of Bix Beiderbecke, Louis Armstrong, Chet Baker, and Miles Davis. Also of note are his albums Rava, L'Opera Va' and Carmen, which are his interpretations of operatic arias and overtures. In 2001, he founded a quintet with pianist Stefano Bollani and toured with Gato Barbieri and Aldo Romano.[1] In the trio Europeans, he worked with Eberhard Weber and Swiss percussionist Reto Weber.

In June 2005, Rava was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Music from Berklee College of Music at the twentieth anniversary of jazz education at the Umbria Jazz Festival, in Perugia, Italy.[3]

In 2023, Rava assembled a band of young Italian jazz musicians called The Fearless Five, consisting of Matteo Paggi on trombone, Francesco Ponticelli on double bass, drummer and singer Evita Polidoro, and guitarist Francesco Diodati, and began touring the major European jazz festivals. In July 2024, he released the album Fearless Five with this new band, featuring new versions of some of his most famous songs such as "Lavori Casalinghi" and "The Trial".[4]

Discography

edit
 

As leader/co-leader

edit
  • Il Giro Del Giorno in 80 Mondi (Black Saint, 1972)
  • Katcharpari (MPS/BASF, 1973)
  • The Pilgrim and the Stars (ECM, 1975)
  • Pupa o Crisalide (RCA, 1975)
  • "Quotation Marks" (Japo, 1976)
  • The Plot (ECM, 1977)
  • Enrico Rava Quartet (ECM, 1978)
  • Ah Enrico Rava (ECM 1980)
  • Nexus Meets Enrico Rava (Four Leaf Clover 1984)
  • Secrets (Soul Note, 1987)
  • Volver with Dino Saluzzi (ECM, 1987)
  • Quatre with D'Andrea, Vitous, Humair (Gala, 1989)
  • Earthcake with D'Andrea, Vitous, Humair (Gala, 1991)
  • Rava L'Opera Va (Label Bleu, 1993)
  • Chanson (Gala, 1994)
  • Nausicaa with Enrico Pieranunzi (EGEA, 1994)
  • Bella with Pieranunzi, Pietropaoli, Gatto (Philology, 1994)
  • Carmen (Label Bleu, 1995)
  • Electric Five with Gianluigi Trovesi (Soul Note, 1995)
  • For Bix and Pops (Philology, 1996)
  • Noir (Label Bleu, 1996)
  • Italian Ballads (Venus, 1996)
  • Icon with Claudio Fasoli, Franco D'Andrea, (Flex, 1998)
  • Ragazzi Selvaggi (Ricordi, 1998)
  • Certi Angoli Segreti (Label Bleu, 1998)
  • Rava Plays Rava (Philology, 1999)
  • Duo En Noir with Ran Blake (Between the Lines, 1999)
  • Shades of Chet (Via Veneto, 1999)
  • Renaissance (Venus, 2002)
  • Montreal Diary (Label Bleu, 2002)
  • Smiling in Hollywood (GMG Music, 2002)
  • What a Day!!! (Platinum, 2002)
  • Full of Life (CAM Jazz, 2003)
  • Easy Living (ECM, 2004)
  • Tati (ECM, 2005)
  • Jazzitaliano Live 2006 (Casa Del Jazz, 2006)
  • The Words and the Days (ECM, 2007)
  • The Third Man (ECM, 2007)
  • New York Days (ECM, 2009)
  • Jazzitaliano Live 2009 (Casa Del Jazz, 2009)
  • Tribe (ECM, 2011)
  • Rava on the Dance Floor (ECM, 2012) – live recorded in 2011
  • The Monash Sessions (Jazzhead, 2014)
  • Wild Dance (ECM, 2015)
  • My Songbook (Casa Del Jazz, 2016)
  • Roma with Joe Lovano (ECM, 2019)[5]
  • Edizione Speziale (ECM, 2021)
  • The Song Is You with Fred Hersch (ECM, 2022) – recorded in 2021
  • 2 Blues for Cecil with Andrew Cyrille and William Parker (TUM, 2022) – recorded in 2021
  • Fearless Five (2024)

As member

edit

European Jazz Ensemble

  • 20th Anniversary Tour (Konnex, 1997)
  • At the Philharmonic Cologne (MA Music, 1989)

Globe Unity Orchestra

  • Jahrmarkt & Local Fair (Po Torch, 1977)
  • Pearls (FMP, 1977)
  • Compositions (Japo, 1980)
  • Baden-Baden '75 (FMP, 2011)

ICP Orchestra

  • Live Soncino ICP Orchestra (ICP/Ad Lib, 1979)

Italian Instabile Orchestra

  • Italian Instabile Festival (Leo, 1998)
  • Litania Sibilante (Enja, 2000)
  • Previsioni Del Tempo = Forecast (Imprint, 2002)

As sideman

edit

References

edit
  1. ^ a b c d e "Enrico Rava | Biography & History". AllMusic. Retrieved 31 July 2021.
  2. ^ a b Colin Larkin, ed. (1992). The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music (First ed.). Guinness Publishing. p. 2045. ISBN 0-85112-939-0.
  3. ^ "Berklee College of Music Marks 20 Years of Innovating Education at Umbria Jazz Festival". All About Jazz. 14 June 2005. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
  4. ^ ATTARDI, GIUSEPPE (6 July 2024). "Enrico Rava: My Fearless Band". Segnali Sonori. Retrieved 7 July 2023.
  5. ^ "Enrico Rava | Album Discography". AllMusic. Retrieved 31 July 2021.
edit