mercoledì 7 aprile 2021

PAOLA TAGLIAFERRO SINGS GREG LAKE - LA COMPAGNIA DELL'ES



PAOLA TAGLIAFERRO SINGS GREG LAKE - LA COMPAGNIA DELL'ES

Cd B.T.F Distribution

Artistic production Paola Tagliaferro, Co-production Regina Lake

Article in Italian with interview available from February 26 at the following link: https://athosenrile.blogspot.com/2021/02/paola-tagliaferro-sings-greg-lake-la.html


In the middle of last summer, I had the opportunity to listen to a new album in preview: the new work by Paola Tagliaferro, a very particular project of which I knew the genesis. As said, I’ve had the chance to listen to it before its release and even if when I did that I was fully relaxed and focused, the fact that I did listen to the songs by using some poor equipment left me with only the scent of the finished product, and at the same time I couldn’t grasp all the details.

This project has a title that is able, on its own, to pave the way for fantastic musical worlds: "Paola Tagliaferro sings Greg Lake", a name chosen by Regina Lake, who is also the author of the beautiful cover. This proactive involvement of Mrs Lake - co-producer - should be put into context, because friendships developed over time are not enough to justify such an involvement, which is, moreover, characterised by a high risk coefficient.

The idea of reinterpreting the music of the great musicians of the past always leads to delicate comparisons and the final judgment is almost always the same, merciless for those who chase.

Regina, a person I know personally, is very strict and demanding, and putting in the hands of third parties the precious music of her consort is a recognition of the values of others itself. It is also a denial of the many clones existing in favor of a total reinterpretation, according to a precise process - the one usually used by Paola - learned over years.

The judgment on the author (Paola), when thinking about the past as a term of comparison, should purely concern musical and artistic aspects (her vocal performances, her creations, instrumental and spiritual aspects, experimentation), but in this case we find Paola in the role of the one who must transform the thought of others into music, linking memories / hopes / lyrics to the high skills of her team of which she talks in depth during our chat.

The result is a ten-track album, and this has a decidedly acoustic soul.

The titles do not need to be presented, they are all super well-known and representative of the two bands where Greg Lake played (namely, ELP and King Crimson), and the criterion of choice is exclusively based on the existing affective bond towards particular episodes that have become a fraction of the soundtrack of life.

Paola Tagliaferro "rereads" in the studio what has often been the subject of live renditions and the great work of Pier Gonella and friends (all the members of LA COMPAGNIA DELL'ES are mentioned later on in this article) allows her to create a bucolic / musical picture of great quality and atmosphere, sometimes unleashing pure magic, the one born in the Canevaro Castle of Zoagli in 2012. It was in that year that the presence of Greg Lake left its mark and "Paola Tagliaferro sings Greg Lake" was in fact born, although no one could have imagined it yet.

Paola, whose English rendition was duly guided by Regina herself, offers sublime intimate moments, some of which are present in her latest live repertoire, ranging from From The Beginning to Epitaph passing through Promenade and The Sage. But the ten episodes that form this album are closely linked by a fil rouge, a glue that determines a state of sacredness where Paola's voice blends totally with the elements of the band.

The song currently available, which I offer as an example, is “Lucky Man”, but if I were to extrapolate a song which can represent a compendium of my feelings while listening to this album as a whole, I would use the version of “Take A Pebble”, an alchemy deriving from the fusion of all the elements at stake, a rendition capable of stimulating positive thrills, those thrills I am looking for in the musical field.

A voice which has matured over time and which does not seek primacy but joins as an instrument with a high-level ensemble, and in this sound game emerges, not as an emulation of a myth, but as a very personal reinterpretation of a musical soul that flows spontaneously, despite the physical absence.

Listening to the album and realizing that Greg Lake is present: I think this is ultimately Paola Tagliaferro's goal. She aims to offer a spiritual and musical union that can transcend matter. 

A quality project, measured, elegant, experimental... new ideas at the service of ancient music, and when the result reaches these levels, we can only rejoice.

Among the many things, I asked Paola what criteria she used to chose the songs and what kind of collaboration has been established with Regina Lake ... here are his words:

The songs were born with the heart, and they are the ones I have always loved.

Regina Lake is part of the project as an artistic co-producer. Studying, playing and singing Greg Lake's songs under the guidance of Regina Lake was an intense and profound experience that taught me a lot. The friendship born between us had introduced me to an ethical, kind and intelligent woman, this journey into Greg Lake's music transmitted to me her depth, her sensitivity, her loving and competent knowledge of her.

Hours of work on the phone, for each song, listening to Greg Lake guided by her, perfecting my pronunciation, but above all by inserting the frequency of Greg Lake's intention and listening to it in her music. Being able to convey all these components through my voice while respecting the great artist was a difficult and complex job that enriched me.

 

The CD is distributed by BTF.it (https://www.btf.it), while streaming is present on all major platforms.

 

01 From The Beginning

02 Still You Turn me On

03 Lucky Man

04 C’est La Vie

05 Promenade

06 The Sage

07 Take A Pebble

08 I Believe In Father Christmas

09 Moonchild

10 Epitaph/Battlefield

 

LA COMPAGNIA DELL’ES 

Voice - Paola Tagliaferro

Guitar - Pier Gonella

Viola - Giulia Ermirio

Piano - Andrea Zanzottera

Oboe, Xilophono, Lute, Bells – Enten Hitti (Pierangelo Pandiscia, Gino Ape)

Percussions – U.T.Gandhi

Harp – Vincenzo Zitello

 

Credits:

Artistic Production – Paola Tagliaferro; Artistic Co-Production – Regina Lake

Arrangements – Paola Tagliaferro, each musician freely wrote the multitracks of the parts assigned to his instrument... 

Mix Paola Tagliaferro and Pier Gonella.

Sound Engineer – Pier Gonella

Recorded at MusicArt Studios – Rapallo – (GE) Italy

Cover design - Paola Tagliaferro and Regina Lake.

Cover Greg Lake Image – Drawing by Regina Lake

Cover Paola Tagliaferro Image – Photo by Riki Modena

Dedicated to the Memory of Greg Lake

A Special Thanks to Regina Lake

 

www.paolatagliaferro.it

https://www.btf.it