Italian guitarist
Maurizio Geri says that he studied the gypsy music of the Manouches for years after he first heard the music of
Django Reinhardt. For his first disc as a leader he chose to record a quintet of three acoustic guitars, bass, plus violin to present the spirit of a rarely recorded style. Certain special guests add clarinet, melodeon, vibes, and percussion on some of the tracks.
Geri is an accomplished improviser who is clearly comfortable with the genre, and he assembled an all-star group worthy of the music. He contributed several period pieces and included a few from
Reinhardt (including "Nuages," and "Tears"). The band is well rehearsed, and this album is recorded in high fidelity, giving a sense of the exuberant joy reflected by its approach. Relaxed, proficient, and enjoyable,
the Maurizio Geri Swingtet exudes an emotional warmth and technical dexterity worthy of the style it emulates. While not breaking any new ground (and not attempting to do so), the group nonetheless reproduces a feeling for a kind of historical sound that is rarely reproduced, at least with the quality found here.