Biography
Slivovitz, the jazz-rock ensemble based in Naples, Italy, takes its name from a plum brandy common throughout Central and Eastern Europe. Formation took place on September 27, 2001, when saxophonist Pietro Santangelo later explained in a Web interview that the musicians first coalesced during an unplanned street performance. The group blends jazz and rock with multiple additional idioms, above all Balkan and Gypsy currents that the band began investigating after traveling to Hungary in 2003.
Its self-titled debut was tracked in 2004 for an Italian label; thereafter the act signed with MoonJune Records, the New York imprint that issued Hubris in 2009. That album contained mainly original pieces yet also incorporated three remastered selections from the earlier release. A seven-piece configuration, augmented by several guests, comprised bassist Domenico Angarano, drummer Stefano Costanzo, guitarist Marcello Giannini, vocalist Ludovica Manzo, harmonica player Derek di Perri, saxophonist Santangelo, and violinist Riccardo Villari. The expanded roster permitted abrupt stylistic pivots among jazz-rock, Balkan music, Afro-beat, funk, Latin jazz, and faint echoes of Canterbury.
Manzo’s engaging vocals heightened the ensemble’s occasional airy Mediterranean character. Following her departure, Slivovitz adopted a leaner, higher-energy rock-oriented stance on its second MoonJune album, 2011’s Bani Ahead. The recording introduced two newcomers: drummer Salvatore Rainone, who replaced Costanzo, and trumpeter Ciro Riccardi. Riccardi’s arrival, together with Giannini’s more aggressive guitar tone and a sharpened emphasis on songwriting and arranging, lent the music a punchier, brass-forward profile while also yielding passages that recalled the cinematic approach of Mark Isham.
Its self-titled debut was tracked in 2004 for an Italian label; thereafter the act signed with MoonJune Records, the New York imprint that issued Hubris in 2009. That album contained mainly original pieces yet also incorporated three remastered selections from the earlier release. A seven-piece configuration, augmented by several guests, comprised bassist Domenico Angarano, drummer Stefano Costanzo, guitarist Marcello Giannini, vocalist Ludovica Manzo, harmonica player Derek di Perri, saxophonist Santangelo, and violinist Riccardo Villari. The expanded roster permitted abrupt stylistic pivots among jazz-rock, Balkan music, Afro-beat, funk, Latin jazz, and faint echoes of Canterbury.
Manzo’s engaging vocals heightened the ensemble’s occasional airy Mediterranean character. Following her departure, Slivovitz adopted a leaner, higher-energy rock-oriented stance on its second MoonJune album, 2011’s Bani Ahead. The recording introduced two newcomers: drummer Salvatore Rainone, who replaced Costanzo, and trumpeter Ciro Riccardi. Riccardi’s arrival, together with Giannini’s more aggressive guitar tone and a sharpened emphasis on songwriting and arranging, lent the music a punchier, brass-forward profile while also yielding passages that recalled the cinematic approach of Mark Isham.
Singles
