Thursday, June 28, 2007
7pm

Presented in collaboration with the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center
Plaza, Japanese American Cultural and Community Center*
244 South San Pedro Street (between 2nd & 3rd Streets)
Los Angeles (Little Tokyo), CA 90012
Information: 213.680.3700

Enzo Avitabile is the spirit of Italian soul. For more than twenty years, the Naples-born saxophonist and flutist has been a star on the Italian jazz scene, performing with everyone from James Brown to Hugh Masekela. A master musician and keen observer, in 2001, he heard the music of Bottari from southern Italy's Campania Region. To call Bottari unique is an understatement in the extreme. Playing the centuries old traditional rhythms of pastellesas and tarantellas, their infectious sound is produced from striking barrels and vats and hitting scythes with steel sticks. Led by Pasquale Romano, Bottari found a kindred spirit in Avitabile and soon they were exploring the possibilities of a partnership that would respect traditional Italian music even as they sought to innovate it. The result is a body of original songs written in a Neapolitan dialect that connects past to present, giving new life to music from the region. Their music is mesmerizing, fresh, and unmistakable. For their debut West Coast performance, Avitabile will be joined by 17 members of Bottari.