Bruno Tommaso
Born in 1946, this Roman bassist (not to be confused with Giovanni Tommaso, his cousin and also a bassist with Enrico Rava, among others) is now a key figure on the Italian scene; his work has ranged from medieval and contemporary music to jazz. He's among the founders of the important popular school of music in the Testaccio neighborhood of Rome, and was the first president of the Italian Association of Jazz Musicians. His influence can be detected in most of the more interesting musical projects in Italy during the last 20 years. He's an outstanding composer -- compositions include 12 variations on a theme by Jerome Kern and soundtracks for Steamboat Bill Jr. by Buster Keaton -- and arranger: he arranged opera arias for Enrico Rava in Rava L'Opera Va and Carmen (label Bleu, 1993 and 1995) and for Gianluigi Trovesi in Small Fairy Tales (Soul Note, 2001). Tommaso is a founding member of the Italian Instabile Orchestra which he subsequently left, maintaining, however, a friendly and cooperative relationship; he still occasionally conducts the orchestra's performance of his pieces ("I Virtuosi di Noci" on Live in Noci Leo 1995, and "Il Maestro Muratore" on Skies of Europe ECM). Tommaso is the most in-demand conductor and arranger of Italian jazz, but is also a committed improviser in the seminal Gruppo Romano Free Jazz. His discography as a leader does not do full justice to his musical output, but Meditango (Onyx Jazz Club of Matera, 1998) and the suite for improvising soloists and orchestra Nux Erat (CMC, 1994), with Pino Minafra, Gianluigi Trovesi, and Evan Parker may give an idea of the scope of his interests. In Il Diritto e il Rovescio (Siena Jazz, 1996), Tommaso used texts including the writings of judges Falcone and Borsellino, killed in Sicily by Cosa Nostra for their activity against crime. He teaches at the Naples Conservatory, where he created a jazz orchestra featuring vocalist Maria Pia De Vito (Oltre Napoli la Notte, Dischi della Quercia, 2000) and he's to be found in Italy wherever jazz, in the broadest sense of the word, is performed or taught.
© Francesco Martinelli /TiVo
Similar artists
Discography
11 album(s) • Sorted by Bestseller
-
Modern Art Trio
Franco D'Andrea, Franco Tonani, Bruno Tommaso
Jazz - Released by Vedette Records on 18 jul. 1977
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
12 variazioni su un tema di Jerome Kern
Jazz - Released by Splasc(h) Records on 31 aug. 1989
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Oltre Napoli La Notte
Jazz - Released by Dischi Della Quercia on 31 dec. 2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Swinging Europe 2003 (feat. Bruno Tommaso)
Jazz - Released by Music Mecca on 9 apr. 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Relazioni Clandestine
Antonangelo Giudice, Bruno Tommaso
Jazz - Released by Notami Jazz on 14 feb. 2017
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Barga Jazz 1987 (Live)
Moderne jazz - Released by Splasc(h) Records on 8 sep. 1987
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
RULEZ (feat. Noway)
Hip-Hop/Rap - Released by Brutte Pieghe on 24 apr. 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Balookamatata
Divers - Released by Brutte Pieghe on 18 jun. 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Barcaroll
Hip-Hop/Rap - Released by Brutte Pieghe on 1 sep. 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Funkyons
Hip-Hop/Rap - Released by Brutte Pieghe on 31 jul. 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Weiss Hund
Hip-Hop/Rap - Released by Brutte Pieghe on 18 jun. 2019
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo