Les Nuages en France

Les Nuages en France

Guitarist Marco Cappelli’s relationship with Mode Records is multifaceted to say the least. Following two discs from longstanding Italian new music collective Ensemble Dissonanzen and Cappelli’s own Extreme Guitar project, the debut release of Cappelli’s own compositions for jazz trio brings a whole new element to the fruitful collaboration. Les Nuages En France also bears the fruit of the many years the trio has worked together: joined by bassist Ken Filiano and drummer Satoshi Takeishi, the guitarist has created a rich assemblage of works that breathe deeply, struggle with determination and revel in beauty, often all at once. Off-kilter grooves mesh with skittery clouds of clicking noises on “La Femme Policier” and “La Bien Aimée Du Nuage D’à Côté”, Filiano’s robust pizzicato darting in between Takeishi’s nuanced brushwork. “Oncle Et Neveu” features a vast array of acoustic textures, the sympathetic strings of Cappelli’s bizarre mutant guitar and the various bowed and plucked sounds of Filiano’s bass floating in and out of each other atop a driving pulse from Takeishi. Live at Drom last month, Cappelli’s trio produced a similarly varied sound, though incorporating effects pedals to create an even more diverse texture. Cappelli’s mastery of the classical guitar and ability to express melodic beauty and fragmented abstraction in the same moment was unparalleled. The masterful integration of form, texture and groove formed the core of what made the trio so compelling. A melodic gesture would take a left turn into a driving repetitive rhythm just at the last second, setting up a whole new direction, as the ensemble dynamic shifted radically, but with a complete sense of organic trajectory.

– Wilbur MacKenzie, The New York City Jazz Record, June 2011

Marco Cappelli Acoustic Trio – Les Nuages en France

I’ve caught acoustic guitar virtuoso Marco Cappelli on many occasions, playing solo or in assorted group improvs as well as with members of Area, and he consistently amazes me. This music was inspired by characters in thriller novels by Fred Vargas which are described in poems by Barbara Raggi and included in the liner booklet. The poems are written in French and in English so we know what is being described. Marco writes that this music recorded during a scorching New York summer so it appropriate that today is just June 1st (2011) and already it is 97 degrees. At this point Marco has been playing with these New York musicians for a number of years and you can hear the close bond in their playing. The trio is completely sympathetic to each others playing and the balance of their abilities is perfect. Mr. Filiano plays some exquisite, haunting bowed bass on the first track while Takeishi plays his distinctive hand percussion & cymbals delicately. Much of this music reminds of a soundtrack for a mysterious noir film. Each poem is like a scene from one of these films and the music evokes the images of the poems particularly well. I can almost hear the brooding, detective-like voice of John Lurie reading the words. Marco’s consistently enchanting guitar often sounds like a character slinking his way through the various scenes. A marvelous disc in more ways than one.

– Bruce Lee Gallanter, Downtown Music Gallery, June 2011

Marco Cappelli Acoustic TrioLes Nuages en France

Italian acoustic guitarist Marco Cappelli joins sensitive percussive colorist Satoshi Takeishi and bassist Ken Filiano on this collection of riveting originals like “La Femme Policier” and the sparse “La Bien Aimée du Nuage D’à Côté.” Filiano, who possesses one of the most resounding, woodiest upright tones this side of Miroslav Vitous, is also a master with the bow, as he demonstrates on the opener, “Le Commissaire sur les Nuages,” and on the bombastic, freewheeling “Oncle et Neveu.” There’s a touch of Egberto Gismonti in Cappelli’s percussive playing on “Le Second,” and in his flowing improvisations on the grooving “Le Policier Désaremé.” And he tosses in a coy reference to the French national anthem, “La Marseillaise,” at the end of the frantic closer, “La Morsure D’araignée.”

– Bill Milkowski, JazzTimes, 3 September 2011

Marco Cappelli Acoustic Trio
Les Nuages en France
Mode/Avant 07

Di grande interesse e riuscita è anche il trio del chitarrista e compositore di Marco Cappelli, che suona con un bassista e un percussionista dall’area più radicale della scena newyorkese. Strumentista e compositore di estrazione classica, muove i suoi precisis e stimolanti spunti tematici all’interno di un finissimo e originale percorso improvvisativo, che ricorda in parte le atmosfere di Ralph Towner, proietta però in una dimensione più vicina al mondo classico contemporaneo.

– Franco, MusicJazz, April 2012