Mar 30, 2026 10:30 PM
Flea Finds His Jazz Thing
In the relatively small pantheon of certifiable rock stars venturing into the intersection of pop music and jazz, the…
Marco Pignataro’s new album, Almas Antiguas, reflects elements of his professional and personal life.
(Photo: Lucy Pignataro)If jazz is a music of self-expression, it’s only natural that it should include autobiographical elements. Still, it’s not often that an artist presents a narrative as personal and sweeping as what saxophonist Marco Pignataro offers on his second album, Almas Antiguas (Zoho).
“This album documents everything involved with my personal life and my work life,” Pignataro said. There’s his youth in Bologna, Italy; his experiences as a professional musician, including work with his eventual mentor, bassist Eddie Gomez; and the academic career that took him from Puerto Rico, where he co-founded the Jazz and Caribbean Music Department at the Conservatory of Music, to Boston, where he’s currently managing director of the Berklee Global Jazz Institute.
“Even on my first CD, all the compositions were based on very personal, emotional impressions,” Pignataro said of his 2011 debut, Sofia’s Heart. “That’s the way I like to create music. Almas Antiguas represents a very particular frame of mind that I’ve been in for the last year, personally and emotionally.”
What Pignataro wanted to convey was a sense of narrative, so that listeners would hear a story unfold as the musicians performed. “I didn’t want it to be about my saxophone or my playing,” he explained. “I wanted it to be about the music, in which I happen to play saxophone.”
He also wanted the program to highlight strong melodies. “I come from a culture where melody is such an important part of expression,” he said. “There’s not an Italian musician I know who doesn’t have an attachment—or at least a certain sensitivity—to melody.”
As the pieces gestated, Pignataro developed a clear idea of how the music should sound, but less of a sense of who would actually create that sound. Gomez was a given. “Eddie and I have a 10-year relationship now,” he said. “I always start with Eddie being in the center.
“But then I started thinking about the other people. One day at the Berklee Global Jazz Institute, we had Alan Pasqua and Adam Cruz doing this master class. At one point, they played together, just piano and drums, and when I heard them, I heard exactly the sound that I was hearing in my mind. There’s something about the elegance, the sense of space and the sense of emotional output that they deliver when they play. Then I imagined Eddie in the center of it and thought, ‘This is just perfect.’”
Still, Pasqua, Gomez and Cruz never had played as an ensemble before. “When we all went into the studio, it was a big question mark,” Pignataro recalled. “We had barely rehearsed, and I really had no idea what would happen. And as we played the first song, it was as if this band always existed.” Tenor saxophonist George Garzone appears on three tracks of Almas Antiguas.
“Everybody was really clear on what I was trying to convey through the music,” Pignataro said. “[It] made sense to them, and the chemistry was really magical. I was proud of that. One of the things we’re trying to teach our students is how important it is to select musicians who will resonate with what you want to do.” DB
“Cerebral and academic thought is a different way to approach music,” Flea says of his continuing dive into jazz. “I’ve always relied on emotion and intuition and physicality.”
Mar 30, 2026 10:30 PM
In the relatively small pantheon of certifiable rock stars venturing into the intersection of pop music and jazz, the…
Cécile McLorin Salvant busts out Jelly Roll Morton’s “The Murder Ballad” at Big Ears, here with pianist Sullivan Fortner.
Apr 7, 2026 1:21 PM
There’s pluralism, then there’s PLURALISM! — and then there’s Big Ears. Thurston Moore, who participated in…
Each of the 25 JAMs has delivered a poster featuring a jazz legend that is sent out to schools across the nation. This year’s poster features Tony Bennett.
Mar 30, 2026 10:20 PM
Every April for the past quarter century, something remarkable has happened across the United States and far beyond.…
“We thought it’s important that Ronin has a new statement,” said Nik Bärtsch of his band’s latest album, Spin. “The sound is differently produced, so it reflects more of who we are.”
Apr 21, 2026 10:00 AM
Nik Bärtsch cuts an imposing figure on stage. He’s unmistakable with his soul patch, shaven head and black attire.…
Bollani demonstrates at the piano during a live Blindfold Test in Umbria, Italy, while writer Ashley Kahn, right, and translator Greg Burk look on.
Mar 24, 2026 11:42 AM
Raconteur, bon vivant and popular television host Stefano Bollani is also one of Italy’s best-known pianists, a rare…
