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