Many More Days

Their debut disc was described by UK blog The Jazzmann as “An absorbing and often beautiful recording that deserves to be heard widely. These beguiling snapshots speak of even greater things to come.”  And indeed the second ECM album from Swiss/Italian trio Third Reel takes its open-plan music to the next level. Emanuele Maniscalco, Nicolas Masson and Roberto Pianca all bring music into Third Reel, and each of them has his own distinct compositional signature, but from the outset their pieces are “always conceived as material for multiple, unpredictable developments.” Compositional guidelines are like gateways into fields to explore. Masson’s elegant clarinet and lean-toned tenor are emphasized, Maniscalco floats between drums and piano, quietly lyrical on both instruments, and Pianca is most often a kind of orchestrator-in-action, subtly enfolding the interaction with swelling sustained chords, or underlining it with thick drones.  Many More Days was recorded at Auditorio Stelio Molo RSI, Lugano, in August 2014 with Manfred Eicher as producer.

The material is organised here into suite-like blocks, with most of the first half of the album featuring primarily Maniscalco’s compositions, and the second half mostly Masson’s pieces,. including “White” a two part dedication to Masabumi Kikuchi.