Fone Records - LP108 -  180 Gram Virgin Vinyl  

AAA 100%  Analogue - Recording , Mastering & Cutting

Club 496 - Only 496 Copies Numbered Limited Edition - Pressed at Pallas

AAA 100% Analogue This LP was Remastered using Pure Analogue Components Only, from the Master Tapes through to the Cutting Head

 For decades the Italian label Fone has not only stood for excellent sound and music quality, but also for a very wide range of different artists, styles, genres and creative approaches. In addition to Fone's great classical recordings, it is primarily chamber music ensembles from pop and jazz, which are the special love of label leader Giulio Cesare Ricci. Fone is dedicated to this album with a big gala: "Gran Gala" is the wonderful compilation with which Signore Ricci celebrates his artists of the small musical format. 

And who can hear it? Groovy swinging, a tried and tested Fone trio opens up: Scott Hamilton (saxophone), Paolo Birro (piano) and Alfred Kramer (drums) with Henry Mancini's "Pink Panther Theme", that is pure musical freedom. Scott Hamilton can be heard again on page B, in a duo with the pianist Andrea Pozza, he plays the Sonny Rollins classic "Airegin" from his LP "Who Cares?" - feathered bebop, which without any percussion and Bass. 

 Speaking of the bass, who can not be missed by a Fone gala, is the double-bass grandmaster Enzo Pietropaoli. The trio with Fulvio Sigurta (trumpet) and Battista Lena (guitar) and the stunning bluesy ballad "La Notte" from the album of the same name; In the duo with singer Eleonora Bianchini (here a Michael Jackson classic is originally brushed against the grain); And finally a real virtuoso solo piece of his own piece from his LP "Solo". 

 Two jazz duos are still playing: Old school and groovy bring a Riccardo Zegna (piano) and Giampaolo Casati (trumpet) with a piece of their album "Paris Blues" to finger-snapping, totally self-conscious and dreamy, stroking Peo Alfonsi (guitar) and Salvatore Maiore (double bass) the musical soul. 

 Intimate and atmospheric are the sounds that Fausto Mesolella elicits from his guitar in Nino Rota 's Romeo and Juliet theme - but he also completes this compilation with the greatest piece: "Tulipani" from his album "Cantostefano "Leaves a kind of Italian mix of Mark Knopfler and Leonard Cohen floating out of the box with a down-to-earth band. 

Various artists and occupations, straight jazz or experimental crossover, live recording or specially selected recording location - one thing all together on this LP have collected together: The extremely perfect recording and the excellent mastering by Giulio Cesare Ricci in a quality, from The other labels can only dream of. All the recordings to be recorded here were made with a purely analog signal path and were also mastered purely by analogy on the Riccis Ampex 2-track machine. This compilation is not only a gala of the brilliant artists at Fone, but also a celebration of the amazing sound quality, for which this label is famous. As always with Fone, "Gran Gala" also appears on 180 g Virgin Vinyl and in a limited edition of 496 copies. You just have to treat that! 

Various artists heard at the Gran Galà dell'Alta Fedeltà audio show in Milano, Italy.

 Selections:
Side A:
1. The Pink Panther (S. Hamilton - sax, P. Birro - piano, A. Kramer - drums)
2. The Way You Make Me Feel (E. Bianchini - voce, E. Pietropaoli - contrabbasso)
3. La Notte (E. Pietropaoli - contrabbasso, B. Lena - chitarra, F. Sigurta - tromba)
4. Bimbi (P. Alfonsi - chitarra, S. Maiore - contrabbasso)
5. Al Giochi Addio (F. Mesolella - guitar e loop pedal)
Side B:
1. Airegin (S. Hamilton - sax, A. Pozza, piano)
2. Una Palabra (E. Bianchini - voce, E. Pietropaoli - contrabbasso)
3. Someday Sweet Heart (R. Zegna - piano, G. Casati - tromba)
4. Confuso Nel Vento (E. Pietropaoli - contrabbasso)
5. Tulipani (F. Mesolella - voce/chitarra/dobro/basso, M. Ciaramella - batteria, F. Ghidelli - pedal steel, N. Carrozza - cori, P. Magoni - cori)