Massimo Pierini | Jazz

HOW I CONNECTED WITH JAZZ In my parent's house there were no jazz records. So my interest for jazz music has come from some different place. Probably from radio and TV broadcasts I was watching as a little child. One of the first songs I ever heard was probably "In The Mood"... and I probably listened to it at the radio. I loved that song. I might have been about  four years old. Sometimes they put that record on the Radio and I clearly remember that for years I have tried to get the title in vain! Even when I became good in English... the speakers seem to say it quickly and with a slurred speech... that got me nervous! During the 70's the TV gave a lot of movies with some kind of jazz soundtracks. I remember clearly the movies with Louis Armstrong such as High Society, Hello Dolly and Going Places (1938). I also remember to have seen Cab Calloway and the movies with Fred Astaire, Doris Day, Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra. After that, when I probably was about 17/18 y.o. I remember seeing Mr. Oscar Peterson on TV: I recorded him, he really hit me. When the compact disc technology came along my brother bought a Jazz anthology so I began to know more bigs.  I think I didn't buy jazz records until I was 24 y.o. when on a travel to Sweden and in a painful state of abstinence from music, I bought two jazz MC: one by Satchmo and the other was "The Quintessential of Billie Holiday", on the same day I also bought two other MC's! Armstrong, Calloway, Peterson and Billie Holiday are my all-time favorites to this day.

ME AS A JAZZ COMPOSER
Sometimes people ask me what kind of jazz I write.
Well, It is a though question to answer when one is the kind of artist whose music come from within, you know.
I write according to what my heart is feeling at a given moment. Having a long experience in writing songs... the song form comes naturally to me.
So sometimes it can be a bluesy tune, sometimes a swing and sometimes... something that sounds a little bit more "modern", as a be-bop perhaps. I don't think too much about these marketing categories... I simply follow my inspiration and try to keep each of my compositions internally coherent... nothing more.
I have a similar difficulty when they ask me about my influences: not being an academic virtuoso... I believe I just adapt my natural gifts, compositional sensibility and my style
to the jazz form I feel emerging at that particular moment. I could name many jazz musicians I admire... but in the end they are "just" musicians I enjoy listening to; not real influences.

Generally speaking I prefer melody and content over musical virtuosity so my pieces are thematic and short. However I am not against adding improvisational sections to songs. Even if I respect the various traditional languages, I write about what I feel. Therefore my compositions are formally, completely original.

The instruments I love most are: double bass, piano, vibraphone, trumpet with the harmon, saxes, clarinet, guitar.
And I love that brushes sound on the drums. So I write primarily for these instruments.
Although to classify me or my music  is not easy as drinking a glass of water... basically, I prefer a classical style, a good melody, a nice rhythm.
On the other hand I am not interested in virtuosity or fusion.
In order to have an insight into my jazz songwriting you can listen to my song Look, Look, Look on Youtube or other platforms.

ME AS A JAZZ PLAYER
The core of any of my live shows, consists of originals with the addition of some classics by Louis Armstrong, Fats Waller, Louis Prima, Hoagy Carmichael.
My show is usually varied: as a singer I may have a more pronounced swing-blues attitude while as a guitarist I may shift from bossanova (one of the genres I started with along with songs) to something too personal to be precisely defined.
Regarding my lineup, I currently favor an intimate atmosphere and a small number of musicians: 
usually a duo or trio maybe with a piano or vibraphone or a wind instrument added.

However, due to my daily Studio routine, lack of time, and even some health issues I am facing in this 2026... I have become less interested in playing jazz myself and much more in providing songs to other artists and bands in the business to collaborate with, as a pure songwriter.

ABOUT THE DIFFERENT JAZZ MUSICAL LANGUAGES
Philosophically speaking my idea is that we should preserve the specific languages we have inherited from history and tradition and not trying to destroy these beautiful and organic languages, thinking we can mix and shake anything and substitute them with some artificial and highbrow new language.
I will always love Ragtime,Dixieland, Charleston, Swing and Bebop. And I will always love the blues from which all Jazz  derives.
As a composer I do believe these musical styles can be enriched... but should not be bent and distorted to suit the egocentric will of musicians.
Writing new music, while remaining within musical languages ​​that have a long tradition, is a big challenge: it is even more difficult than trying to "explore new territories", not everyone has the courage to take on such a challenge.

COLLABORATIONS OPPORTUNITIES

DISCOGRAPHIC COLLABORATION I have collaborated with the  talented Jazz singer Irene di Vilio from Varese  - also a teacher and director of the "Atelier Del Canto" School She recorded one of my most iconic songs called Look, Look, Look and provided backing vocals for another. I have collaborated with some double bassists and drummers. I like collaborations. As a composer I am interested in providing original songs to bands, singers and performers from around the world. I am interested in collaborating with good performers, even for production purposes, for my personal discographic project. Mainly with musicians who play double bass, drums, brass and woodwinds, piano. However I am open to other types of musicians. An instrument I particularly love and that have used in my compositions is the vibraphone. Disclaimer: I am not looking for session musicians, just committed musicians who would like to work with me, for an Album or two. For more information contact me at Nautilus Studio which is my Private Studio. If you are a jazz singer or performer interested in collaborating, just drop me a line and maybe we can profitably start working together.