Record of the day: Various performers, “Clarinettes à…”

Various performers, “Clarinettes à Saint-Germain des Près” (Cd Emarcy 0135432)

France was the first country in Europe to understand the importance of American jazz and to welcome the musicians who created it, treating them as they deserved, that is, as artists, offering them a very different welcome from that which they were given in their homeland. of origin (Miles Davis knew something about it when he found himself going from arguing with Jean-Paul Sartre and Juliette Greco at the tables of Parisian cafés to being beaten up in front of a club in New York by a racist policeman solely because he was smoking a cigarette outdoors).

Musicians like Parker and Gillespie were considered for their authentic artistic value and critically analyzed in a finally competent manner; record companies such as Vogue and Pathè recorded a large number of jazz sessions, spreading the word throughout Europe. More than natural, therefore, that a real French school of jazz musicians was born close to the bebop revolution, expressing excellent personalities who, due to inadequate promotion at an international level, did not enjoy the fortune they deserved. One of these is the clarinetist Hubert Rostaing, a veteran of the Parisian musical scene also active as an arranger and film composer. In 1957 he created this delightful album under his own name, where he classily pays homage to Benny Goodman, to Gershwin, unleashing himself on the classic “Cherokee”, also performing his own songs that smell of a cheerful and carefree swing, created together with a group of excellent soloists where Martial Solal’s piano stands out.

This anthology also features another soloist unknown to us, Maurice Meunier, who played with names of the caliber of Django Reinhardt, Chet Baker, Kenny Clarke, Stéhpane Grappelli, René Urteger, soon becoming one of the most sought-after names on the transalpine scene thanks to his ability on the clarinet (he was also a good saxophonist). This 1956 session sees him together with Pierre Michelot (double bass), Raymond Fol (piano) and Christian Garros (drums), all quality musicians tackling arduous pieces such as Miles Davis’ “Dig” and “I Know, Don’t Know How” by Gerry Mulligan without making us miss the originals too much, then adding the classic “Crazy Rhythm” and a couple of songs by Johnny Mercer.

Carlo Boccadoro, composer and conductor, was born in Macerata in 1963. He lives and works in Milan. He collaborates with soloists and orchestras in different parts of the world. He is the author of numerous books on musical topics.

This text is taken from “Lunario della musica: A record for every day of the year” published by Einaudi, courtesy of the author and the publisher.