Pete Malinverni has been in the middle of the New York Jazz scene for over four decades. During this love affair with Jazz he has had the chance to meet and perform with the top Jazz artists in the country. The inspiration for his latest CD, "On The Town" was a result of an unplanned meeting with Leonard Bernstein at an upscale restaurant where Malinverni had a gig. The restaurant was chosen as the site for the opening night party for Franco Zeffirelli's production of "Tosca" at the Metropolitan Opera. As Malinverni played through a selection of arias at the piano, Bernstein walked in, and Malinverni immediately launched into the composer's "Lucky To Be Me". Bernstein was touched by the tribute and spent a considerable portion of the evening hanging around the piano. Malinverni comments "His public image was of a guy who knew his stuff and was super passionate about it. But I found out that night that as passionate as he seemed, he was even more so. When I saw him in the flesh, it was electric. His head poked through the clouds, and the piano somehow seemed a more exalted place then and thereafter".
It's clear that this meeting left a deep impression on Pete that has only grown stronger with time. The music on this CD is a wonderful undertaking of great compositions we all treasure and giving them a new Jazz rebirth. Helping Pete Malinverni accomplish this task were two equally remarkable Jazz musicians, Jeff Hamilton and Ugonna Okegwo . Playing in a trio with Pete Malinverni's brilliant arrangements of these truly classic songs requires the highest level of musical skills and Hamilton and Okegwo make it seem easy!
This is a truly outstanding Jazz Trio and the music they have produced is outstanding! I have attached two YouTube videos featuring songs from "On The Town". The first is "I Feel Pretty" from "West Side Story" and the second is the opening tune, "New York New York" that I believe captures the love Malinverni has for the city.
"I Feel Pretty"Playlist:
