Simona Premazzi, piano
PRE 1174 (CD, available as download). 2023. Premazzi, prod.; Chris Allen, eng.
It is surprising that Simona Premazzi is not better known. She is the real deal on piano her first solo recording, is a highly individual and creative response to the challenges of playing jazz piano without accompaniment, or rather, while serving as one’s own accompanist. The first track is, unmistakably, “In the Still of the Night,” but it is broken in strange places. With the need to supply her own bass line and rhythm, Premazzi’s hands become notably independent. Her dynamism and impulsiveness are exhilarating. She releases the song in intermittent eruptions. It is startling when the fragments coalesce and Cole Porter’s melody rings out resoundingly.
