Australian-born, New York domiciled clarinetist and pianist Adrian Galante presents his debut CD in 8 classic songs from the Great American Songbook.

Tony Bennett never formally studied music, but, after he was discharged from the US Army in 1946, he was able, courtesy of the GI Bill, to attend drama classes at the American Theater Wing. Not surprisingly, the 20-year-old aspiring vocalist quickly realized that he could take what he learned there and apply it to his singing. Tony was particularly taken with advice from a teacher named Mimi Speer. His influences were already far and wide: Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday. But Ms. Speer impressed one overriding idea upon him: 'Do not imitate another singer, because you'll end up sounding just like they do, and you won't develop an original sound. Instead, find a musician you really like and study their phrasing. That way, you'll create a sound on your own.'

The musicians that Tony cited in this context were Stan Getz, Art Tatum, and Lester Young. The latter is particularly important in that Young himself is credited with one of the great truisms regarding instrumental improvisation, namely that when he played a ballad, he made a point to learn the lyrics to the song as well as the tune.

What makes the playing of Adrian Galante so special is that he has fully assimilated both of those mantras, the singer who studies the approach of the great instrumentalists, and the horn player who not only plays the melodies but the words as well. When most musicians play a song, they're usually content to play only the music; Adrian, however, plays the whole song.

He starts this, his premiere album, with two numbers from the Tony Bennett Songbook. He begins It Amazes Me with the verse, 'singing' it out-of-tempo. The pacing is altogether like a great storyteller: after a piano intro sets up his entrance, Adrian lingers longer than we expect before playing his first note. He pulls back, in such a way as to preface what he's about to tell you, as if to let us know, 'Okay, now I'm really going to tell you something.'
Will Friedwald

Track Listing

• It Amazes Me
• You're All The World To Me
• With Every Breath I Take
• I Hadn't Anyone Till You
• It's Alright With Me
• The Folks Who Live On The Hill
• Thanks A Million
• Two For The Road

Additional Details

Label: Zoho

Genre: Jazz

Run Time: 55 mins

Region: 0

Release Date: 03/21/25

UPC: 880956250229