Davide Mantovani - composer, musician

DAVIDE MANTOVANI "There is much detail in the composing, much variety in the music, excellent musicianship and one or two echoes from the past....Mantovani is an excellent composer and a superb bass guitarist." by Ian Carr Mantovani injects great feeling and groove into all tracks without taking over the proceedings. by Paul Scott, "Guitarist"
"SQUARE ONE"
"The uniformly excellent arrangements feature some quite brilliant and imaginative playing, and the broad emotional spectrum ranges from the brooding Walking @ Shiva’s Pace to the extremely sunny Beyond Fears. The band really cooks up a storm on Abandon, one of the standout tracks. Mantovani’s opening unmeasured bass solo suddenly kicks into a wickedly funky polyrhythmic whirlwind brilliantly coloured by the two lead melody instruments – the highly unlikely but extremely effective pairing of steel pan and accordion." Peter Quinn. "Musician"
"At last, the debut album from Davide Mantovani, which contains beautiful, thoughtful compositions based on the soundsand textures of world music. Mantovani injects great feeling and groove into all tracks without taking over the proceedings." Paul Scott. "Guitarist"
"A beautifully realised album". Mantovani is an excellent composer and a superb bass guitarist, and the musicians play a wide variety of material with terrific panache." Square One is so named because it is Mantovani's debut album, and it's a very impressive beginning. There is much detail in the composing, much variety in the music, excellent musicianship and one or two echoes from the past. The opening piece 'Promenade' evokes the poetic spirit of Eberhard Weber's music with it's soprano sax lead and deft changes of pace. 'Brotherly' has an easy loping Latin rock feel and a catchy melody, with a big percussion outing and excellent solos from Beaujolais's vibes and Hunt's acoustic guitar. 'Walking at Shiva's Pace' has a wonderfully slow and sparse rhythm and spare melody reminiscent of Zawinul, with a marvellous soprano solo by Gerry Hunt. Steve Lodder shines on the fast Latin 'Beyond Fear', and the rhythm section is excellent throughout. Ian Carr.
It's a nice production - and a really good cover. " great grooves going and the rhythm section is fantastic. I particularly enjoyed the bass playing in Rockpot, and the unusual rhythms in Abandon - I gave up counting after a whileand just enjoyed the music! And I liked the intensity of much of the music, particularly in Walking @ Shiva's Pace. Congratulations. All my best wishes Neil Ardley
POLARIS "Working with just two instruments, percussion and sophisticated looping technology, Davide Mantovani and Roberto Manes explore rhythms and melody at leisure, and with delight. At times working with mimimalist rhythms, at others with a jazzy Latin feel or a Middle Eastern or African vibe, building up from the simplest elements, Roberto’s electric violin soars into delightful harmony, and Davide’s bass keeps the groove, adds depth and embarks on sophisticated solos. Their spontaneous music has elements of the best ambient styles, with great grooves that invite you to follow two music travellers into imaginary landscapes, dreamlands and adventures." Sebastian Merrick "…indeed something new, experimental, shy to labelling. It felt like an interactive experience, a mixture of futuristic sounds hauntingly blended with the timeless quality of live instruments. The atmosphere in the room was intense, the audience becoming a tool and performer itself, rather than a mere watcher. All in all, it was a small piece of magic." Martha Clarke "Virtuosic improvisation over sublime soundscapes created by loop delays" Paul Pace

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