Cristiano Celli

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"BANDA DA GIRO?" OUT NOVEMBER 29TH

Published by the independent label Wow Records and available on all digital platforms starting Saturday, November 29, Banda da Giro? is the new album by saxophonist, clarinetist, and composer Cristiano Celli, who is joined on this record by Enrico Imperioli (French horn), Moussa Bonaventura (double bass), and Massimo Ceci (drums). The CD is enriched by the presence of rapper 1989 on the track Intro, for which he recorded an opening speech.

The album consists of five original pieces born from the leader’s compositional creativity, with the exception of the bonus track Belomi Benna, written by Ethiopian artist Mahmoud Ahmed. Banda da Giro? stems from a unique blend centered around melodic essentiality and a strong popular character. Celli’s intention is to create a very particular fusion between the traditional sound of marching bands from Central and Southern Italy—an essential part of his musical upbringing—and a jazz mood. The final product is a dreamlike reinterpretation, dense with the spirituality typical of a village festival, an idea cultivated since childhood: uniting the organic quality and improvisation of a jazz trio or quartet with the timbral variety and identity of band music.

Cristiano Celli describes how this project came to life:
“I wrote five pieces born from the desire to combine melodic simplicity with a strong popular character, with catchy and immediate lines. My idea was to blend the sounds of the marching bands from Central and Southern Italy, which accompanied my growth, with the aesthetics of spiritual jazz. The result is a dreamlike and personal vision of the atmosphere of village festivals, which I have carried in my heart since childhood. My aim is to merge the improvisation and organic feel of a small jazz ensemble with the timbral richness and identity of band music, giving new life to roots I consider the most authentic in my musical journey.”

Biography

A saxophonist, clarinetist, and composer with a marked melodic sense and a genuine, generous communicative style, Cristiano Celli began his musical journey in marching bands and entertainment music. In 2023, he released his first original jazz EP titled Celli. He graduated from the Licinio Refice Conservatory in Frosinone in 2024 and released a live album based on arrangements for jazz octet and string quartet inspired by the soundtrack of Il Sorpasso. He continues to pursue this compelling blend of jazz and folk tradition. Prolific as a composer as well, he collaborates with several ensembles and is one of the saxophonists aboard the train La Dolce Vita Orient Express.