PICCOLA ORCHESTRA GAGARIN

“Vostok is fearless Mediterranean fusion with a Cold War space exploration theme and an absence of unnecessary formalism. Sounds good to me… and it sounds better with each listen.” Dave Foxall, A Jazz Noise (UK)

We are in the 60s and there has been a mutation of Icaru’s wings made of feathers and wax into a few square meters capsule, that flying to the stars, makes real what up to a decade before seemed impossible to achieve. April 12, 1961, Yuri Gagarin makes history as the first human to orbit the Earth: From up here the Earth is blue! How wonderful! … Is beautiful, without borders or boundaries … “¡поехали !!!

The trio Piccola Orchestra Gagarin go across this adventure with the album Vostok, leaving behind the beautiful album Platos Combinados covering along a musical parable in orbits where musical genres are turned into pieces to be recycled into a compelling mosaic. The mission is secret and we are not allowed to know the route the three astronauts will follow but it certainly is a unique opportunity to savor the poetic surrealism of a trio that moves with ease among baroque music, jazz, improv and song form.

Dressed in fake astronaut outfits, the three musicians re-enact Gagarin’s deeds: a pretext to remind us how essential it is in music to experiment and to dare…

PAOLO ANGELI: prepared sardinian guitar, voice

SASHA AGRANOV: cello, voice

ORIOL ROCA: drums, percussion

“They match their international border crossing with trampling all over musical styles; there’s folk from individual traditions, avant-garde-jazz, rock, experimental improvisation, electronica… It’s all grippingly exhilarating and inspiring and very, very original. We all like that, don’t we?.” Ian Anderson, fRoots Magazine (UK)

“A pure post modern crossover, absolutely powerful: no tension’s drops for all 45 minutes. A unique musical flow that moves between free jazz, contemporary, improvisation, popular Sardinian music, Spanish, Russian and arabesque music. Perfect symbiosis, perfect interplay. Never a blush, never a fall of style.” Andrea Aguzzi, Neuguitars Magazine (Italy)

“Avant-garde and mystery, craftsmanship and awareness are intertwined in the expressive world of the Piccola Orchestra Gagarin. The sensitivity of the interpreters, the strength of the ensemble, the timbre connection and mutual respect, freedom and interplay offer the overall look, the welcoming bed in which any inconsistencies are smoothed out.” Fabio Ciminiera, Jazz Convention (Italy)

“A trio with a high rate of creativity and telepathy. Unbridled fantasy and fireworks rule the place.” Ivo Franchi, Musicajazz (Italy)

“With the ability to mix rock, folk, traditional and improvised elements, there is always a tremendous energy. The music they create is dense, dancing and touching.” Gary May, Improjazz Magazine (France)

“The sound of the trio is something unique and special, difficult to categorize: it is folk but jazz, classic but pop, western and eastern, from the North and South of the world, ironic in nostalgia but serious in looking at possible futures.” Fabio Pozzi, Vorrei (Italy)

“On the album Vostok, the trio produces once more a kaleidoscopic beauty jewel, with a material that is decomposed and recomposed as in the hands of a lazy juggler, with no rush, but with so much magic.” Enrico Bettinello, Blow Up Magazine (Italy)

“They invent a music that turns into a world where poetry, inventiveness and the pleasure of playing together are intertwined. From songs to improvisations, they send a beautiful message of mutual understanding. A trio very interesting that we would like to listen in concert.” Thierry Giard, Culturejazz (France)

“Vostok is great album, solid, well performed, which leaves equal space, even at the compositional level, to the three musicians who -and it is not always that obvious- also show a lot of joyfulness, especially when dressed as astronauts.” Gianluca Dessì, Blogfolk (Italy)

“I believe Tom Waits might like it, because the album has even a rogue point, and especially because it opens with African sounds that are then Russian to immediately become Arabs to pay tribute to the great among the greats egiptian singer, Oum Kalthoum.” Carlos Pérez Cruz, El Club de Jazz (Spain)

“The contamination and the energy of the trio reverberate above all in the live performance, a fascinating and engaging sound storm.” Guido Biondi, Il Fatto Quotidiano (Italy)

“Celestial music, in the most opaque sense of the term, deep, beautiful and frightening at the same time.” Martí Farré, Vilaweb (Spain)

“A journey in the form of a suite, in which musical genres are torn to shreds to be recycled into a compelling mosaic.” La Nuova Sardegna (Italy)

“All the way, this is a charming and fun album. We take on a journey that is exciting, challenging and vital, with the chief astronaut Angeli in great shape.” Jan Granlie, Salt Peanuts (Norway)

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