Love Theme from Farewell To Maria – 2017
Enrico Rava and Tomasz Stanko
Two of the great European trumpeters have a rare meeting
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The Italian Enrico Rava (1939- ) and Tomasz Stanko (1942-2018 ) from Poland were two of the top European jazz trumpeters for decades.
Rava tended to have a more introverted style than Stanko but neither was shy to explore new music and to develop their own moody styles separate from that of the American pacesetters.
Despite being active during the same long period, Rava and Stanko only recorded together in 1984 and 1988 as members of a big band led by Cecil Taylor.
In 2017 Stanko and Rava (who on this selection plays flugelhorn) had a rare encounter, co-leading a quintet with two Stanko sidemen (bassist Reuben Rogers and drummer Gerald Cleaver) and pianist Giovanni Guidi from Rava’s band.
Their performance of the “Love Theme from Farwell To Maria” finds the two brassmen being cooperative rather than competitive, displaying similar thoughtful styles that were full of inner fire.
-Scott Yanow
Herbie Hancock