“Gabri flies to Italy” is the 24th album by experimentalist and innovator Riccardo Zappa. Dedicated to his brother Gabriele, it opens with a suite of more than 18 minutes. The composer interweaves the sound of 6 and 12 strings, sometimes offering classical soundscapes for support, such as the use of a pick quartet in “Harmonyos” or a choir in the tracks “Gabri flies to Italy” and “Nimaster Ego”. The atmospheres present very reverberant and extended environments, but strong with remarkable dynamics. Riccardo Zappa’s unquestionable guitar technique does not seem to be an end in itself, but rather serves to expose the themes as clearly as possible. These can coexist between mysticism and techno sequences, to open up to decidedly romantic phrasing, varying from time to time between numerous overlapping audio tracks or proposed in a single guitar composition.
Riccardo Zappa’s art has crossed generations of music lovers and, of course, guitarists. To the latter, he proposed to send a single note produced by their instrument, to use them all, dozens of them, in the song “Play me a note”. This is an effective and irreverent way of moving from one virtual contact to another, which is much more tangible because it is intended to remain fixed in music and time.
The album is very sophisticated both aesthetically and technically. The most suitable musicians and recording studios for the different songs were involved, as well asThe album appears very refined both aesthetically and technically. The most suitable musicians and recording studios for the various songs were involved, as well as OndemediE is creatively responsible for the ‘image.
