Antonio Ciacca
Antonio Ciacca
Pianist, Composer, Educator
www.antoniociacca.org
Antonio Ciacca's experience is unparalleled in the music industry.
With his proven expertise in both sides of the music business, Antonio is truly an international master.
Antonio Ciacca
Pianist, Composer, Educator
www.antoniociacca.org
"At the heart of any true jazzman is the ability to tell his own musical stories in his own way, and hopefully touch a few hearts along the way. Down in his heart, there's a song he can feel, something that no one can steal. It's his own tune, all and in part. Pianist Antonio Ciacca dances to the unique songs in his heart.”
—Todd Barkan, Jazz at Lincoln Center and Record Producer
Antonio Ciacca is a New York-based pianist, composer and educator. Antonio is also Director of Programming at Jazz at Lincoln Center since 2007, where he works closely with JALC Artistic Director Wynton Marsalis.
The Antonio Ciacca Quintet is comprised of first-call New York musicians Ciacca on piano, Joe Magnarelli on trumpet, George Garzone on tenor sax, vibrophonist Joe Locke, bassist Doug Weiss and drummer Francisco Mela.
German-born, raised in Italy, and classically trained, Antonio Ciacca took up jazz at age 20 after hearing Wynton Marsalis. Ciacca began his career as a sideman for such acclaimed jazz artists as Art Farmer, James Moody, Lee Konitz, Jonny Griffin, Mark Murphy, Dave Liebman, and Steve Grossman, who he cites as his mentor, and with whom he studied for three years beginning in 1990. In 1993, he moved to Detroit to study at Wayne State University with Kenny Barron, after which he studied privately with Mingus’ pianist Jackie Byard in New York. In 1998 he also began to perform with saxophonist Benny Golson, with whom he continues to collaborate.
In 2008 he released his album Rush Life on Motéma Records with Joe Magnarelli on trumpet, saxophonist Stacy Dillard, bassist Kengo Nakamura and drummer Rodney Green. “ His piano style’s hints of Horace Silver and Sonny Clark, with a sprinkle of Jaki Byard’s zany wit, stand as crisp finials on his sturdy hand-tooled staircase to the future” —Fred Bouchard, Downbeat
In 2010 he released Lagos Blues on Motéma with Stacy Dillard, Kengo Nakamura and drummer Ulysses Owens, featuring guest artist and saxophonist Steve Grossman, Ciacca’s mentor.
Ted Panken, in his Downbeat review of the Lagos Blues launch at Dizzy’s Club Coca Cola, observed, “He presented a generous selection of standards and originals, marked by fresh harmonizations, intra-ensemble counterpoint and considerable solo flights.” Greg Barbrick, writing in Blogcritics.org, commented “Lagos Blues makes an excellent introduction to the music of Antonio Ciacca, and the addition of Steve Grossman makes it even better. If you are looking for something with the traditional fire of old, tempered with some lovely, modern-day piano work, this is a disc to look into.”
In September 2010 The Antonio Ciacca Trio performed in a special tribute to Bud Powell, which also featured The Jacky Terrason Trio, Barry Harris and Bertha Hope. In the autumn of 2010, Antonio Ciacca and Todd Barkan curated the second annual Italian Jazz Days 2010 New York, showcasing the rich jazz heritage of Italy through a series of concerts featuring American and Italian Jazz artists, including among others, tenor sax great Joe Lovano with Antonio Ciacca, trumpetist Flavio Boltro, bassist Joseph Lepore and drummer Luca Santaniello.
Antonio Ciacca presents a textbook example of the jazz art form being practiced at its highest level. He plays with a rare blend of earthiness, fire and intellect, with elements of Wynton Kelly, Red Garland and Bobby Timmons that recall the most creatively vital and yet oddly neglected schools of jazz
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