Stefano Battaglia

A sophisticated Italian pianist, Stefano Battaglia is known for his atmospheric, richly textured brand of jazz and classical. Building upon the work of artists like <a href="spotify:artist:0F3Aew9DSd6fb6192K1K0Y">Keith Jarrett</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:4jXfFzeP66Zy67HM2mvIIF">Bill Evans</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:5jtGuhEEDh07yaFfm8qHg7">Cecil Taylor</a>, Battaglia emerged to acclaim in the 1980s and has collaborated with a range of jazz musicians from <a href="spotify:artist:2GIms8u3bruipn5MOR5wcs">Kenny Wheeler</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:4YNvbaOaqp5pzC5US5t48k">Lee Konitz</a> to <a href="spotify:artist:7fYB8T3bHPQNqVGBJMRony">Barre Phillips</a> and his frequent collaborator, bassist <a href="spotify:artist:0PDlWX8LMhV9Kb11eWBCjJ">Paolino Dalla Porta</a>. Along with the jazz canon, Battaglia has played the music of classical composers, including works by <a href="spotify:artist:5aIqB5nVVvmFsvSdExz408">Bach</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:0mFblCBw0GcoY7zY1P8tzE">Scarlatti</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:1QL7yTHrdahRMpvNtn6rI2">Händel</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:1zb5zmIuX2lTbzcn7YeQlg">Ligeti</a>, and others. He has made numerous appearances at European festivals and has recorded regularly for the <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Splasc%28h%29%22">Splasc(h)</a> and <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22ECM%22">ECM</a> labels, issuing albums like 1995's Unknown Flames: Live in Sienna, 2006's Raccolto, and 2017's Pelagos.

Born in 1965 in Milan, Battaglia started playing piano when he was seven years old and ultimately graduated from the Conservatory of Milan. In 1981, he toured with the European Youth Orchestra in Barcelona and earned wider attention in 1986 after winning best new pianist of the year award at the J.S. Bach Festival in Düsseldorf. In 1987, he made his solo debut as leader with Things Ain't What They Used to Be on the <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Splasc%28h%29%22">Splasc(h)</a> label. Battaglia has led more than 15 recordings for the label, in settings ranging from solo (such as Baptism and the Swiss Radio Tapes releases) to his 16-piece ensemble <a href="spotify:artist:18ypdz7wjZjpCPSd2np0fP">Theatrum</a> (heard on three 1997 recordings, including Gesti). Also that year, he took home the Brussels National Radio Award as the best young European pianist.

Along with own work, Battaglia has ongoing duo projects with pianist <a href="spotify:artist:5vACdMa2kY7jHnlJwqYRKP">Enrico Pieranunzi</a> and with drummer <a href="spotify:artist:38hAXjCbg6MlaUqFpdNB03">Tony Oxley</a>, and is in the trio ALA with cellist Chico Marquez and clarinetist <a href="spotify:artist:1McRzmSwfysOGYy2GPaSNE">Gabriele Mirabassi</a>. Battaglia's 2000s releases include The Book of Jazz, Vol. 1 from <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Symphonia%22">Symphonia</a> in 2001, and Raccolto and Re: Pasolini both from <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22ECM%22">ECM</a> in 2006 and 2007, respectively. In 2009, Battaglia took a different tack: he recorded an album of duets, playing piano and prepared piano with percussionist and electronic musician <a href="spotify:artist:0PrEXi9LcYr5j82OZLNyNA">Michele Rabbia</a>. The album was issued by <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22ECM%22">ECM</a> in 2010 as Pastorale. Also in 2009, Battaglia returned to work with his trio, comprising <a href="spotify:artist:2AiOY21S87jNoJgfDdnK7m">Salvatore Maiore</a> on double bass and <a href="spotify:artist:4E2wP5MLWAAKpDrAKmBvJd">Roberto Dani</a> on drums. The set was recorded at Lugano's Auditorio Radiotelevisione Svizzera with producer <a href="spotify:artist:4NXTfrH5HwadrU4S5QvwZN">Manfred Eicher</a>. Comprised of ten tracks -- all of which were inspired by mythical places -- Battaglia sought to compose works that ignored the language of contemporary music and harked back to those of earlier eras. The trio issued The River of Anyder in 2011 and returned with Songways in March of 2013.

Battaglia recorded as a soloist, guest, and bandleader for a number of labels. That same year, he collaborated with bassist <a href="spotify:artist:5tRl1obho1srY7kEK13yEC">Fiorenzo Bodrato</a>, guitarist <a href="spotify:artist:65DCgb5qeiA7H7JvzO5C2s">Andrea Massaria</a>, and drummer Massimiliano Furia on Bartleby the Scrivener (based on <a href="spotify:artist:674k1zGzVqfmAcYyeOtMh7">Herman Melville</a>'s novel) for <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Evil+Rabbit%22">Evil Rabbit</a> and Three Open Rooms on <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Caligola%22">Caligola</a> with bassist <a href="spotify:artist:1L7lsYBMbttA0SPaB794ts">Roberto Caon</a> and drummer Marco Carlesso. The following year, his Triosonic band -- with drummer/percussionist <a href="spotify:artist:0PrEXi9LcYr5j82OZLNyNA">Michele Rabbia</a> and bassist <a href="spotify:artist:6UCrDk1a8BBBCoxkGlS3uL">Giovanni Maier</a> -- released the ballad collection Anything Your Little Heart Says on Parco Della Maria. In 2015, Battaglia and <a href="spotify:artist:0PrEXi9LcYr5j82OZLNyNA">Rabbia</a>, along with guitarist/electronicist <a href="spotify:artist:0VqQFqLcy0bBMPDnKB25vC">Evivind Arset</a>, issued the privately released double-length In Memoriam. Pow-bee, on <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Leo%22">Leo</a>, featured the pianist in a quartet setting with saxophonist <a href="spotify:artist:2mb1mABlSBDXUaIGg1fXzi">Andrea Buffa</a>, bassist <a href="spotify:artist:5tRl1obho1srY7kEK13yEC">Bodrato</a>, and drummer <a href="spotify:artist:3Ybkbz7IaaFJJuGAKNdyKv">Dario Mazzucco</a>. 2016 was busy as well. Battaglia's duo album Little Peace Lullaby, with German reedist <a href="spotify:artist:5hnpupU57zGh5W6J0IcBAS">Ulrich Drechsler</a>, was released by <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Enja%22">Enja</a>'s <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Yellowbird%22">Yellowbird</a> imprint, while another duo set, Winds with guitarist <a href="spotify:artist:7dWA1HXg6BUJnSHWA9xYVY">Samo Šalamon</a>, was issued by <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Klopotec%22">Klopotec</a>. A reissue of his first trio record called Things Ain't What They Used to Be, with bassist <a href="spotify:artist:6xEH1NHr6886CTfJhumjOY">Piero Leveratto</a> and drummer <a href="spotify:artist:0gMoZy1oz4x7XZiwbFSDl9">Gianni Cazzola</a>, featuring covers by <a href="spotify:artist:7guDJrEfX3qb6FEbdPA5qi">Stevie Wonder</a>, the <a href="spotify:artist:1YuknfkSYTTbolRpwZBOv4">Gershwins</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:2EExdpjU4SK3xnJHO5paJf">Henry Mancini</a>, and others, appeared on <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Splasc%28h%29%22">Splasc(h)</a>.

Battaglia issued his seventh disc for <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22ECM%22">ECM</a> in 2017, the double-length solo album Pelagos. The music was performed on acoustic and prepared piano (sometimes played simultaneously) and offered both compositions and improvisations as well as two versions of the traditional Arabic song "Lamma Bada Yatathanna." Recorded in concert and in intimate closed-door studio sessions at the Fazioli Concert Hall in Sacile, Italy, the tracks were then arranged by producer <a href="spotify:artist:4NXTfrH5HwadrU4S5QvwZN">Manfred Eicher</a>, who, according to Battaglia, instilled them with "a new fantastic form, based on a totally renewed dramaturgy." In 2019, he paired with clarinetist <a href="spotify:artist:59pnlMKJa3phDabIFCfQeN">Mirco Mariottini</a> on Music for Clarinets and Piano. ~ Joslyn Layne, Rovi