Truly, jazz is music that is created before your eyes, filling the space with the magic of improvisation and touching the deepest feelings. The musicians of the Italian jazz group Antonio Flinta Trio, established in Rome in 1993, know this firsthand.
The guests who arrived in Ashgabat during the European Union Week met with beginning musicians of Turkmenistan. Jazz is open to many instruments, although the traditional ensemble often includes drums, contrabass, piano, saxophone, trumpet and trombone. A guitar and a violin joined the main group at the Ashgabat venue.
Behind the piano is the founder of the Flinta Trio, the pianist, composer and teacher Antonio Flint. The drum set sounded confidently under the direction of Claudio Gioannini, and the sounds of the Roberto Bucci’s contrabass harmonized the whole ensemble, giving the music a special expressiveness.
The master class was supposed to be a mentoring interaction, but it turned into a real exchange of experiences. The musicians collaboratively created unique sounds, exchanged ideas and inspiration, revealing different aspects of jazz and its improvisational nature.
– We traveled thousands of miles to come here and talk with Turkmen musicians, also improvise together. Music is a universal language, and without talking, we can understand each other by communicating in the language of notes - underlined Claudio Gioannini.
The dialogue between cultural traditions has been unbelievably productive, that opens new horizons not only for qualified artists but also for beginning musicians. The musicians responded to the invitation from the audience to play something in national style:
– The case is that this is our first time in Turkmenistan and we have only heard a few pieces of Turkmen national music. But we will try it with pleasure.
The hall was filled with an ethno-jazz melody with an oriental flavor. The sound of saxophones by Ahmat and Alan Abaev enriched the composition, giving depth to the music.
The guests expressed their gratitude to all participants of the meeting. Another master class is ahead, which will take place on November 21. The big jazz concert of the group will be held on November 24 at 19:00 in the National Musical and Dramatic Theatre named after Mahtumkuli.
The European Union Culture Week, which is taking place in Ashgabat from 18 to 27 November, is organized by the EU Representational Office in consort with the German Embassy in Turkmenistan and the Ministry of Culture.
