Davide Giovannini’s Minas Project, Music Spoken Here, The Marr’s Bar. Worcester, 08/01/2026.

Davide Giovannini - drums, vocals, Paul Booth - tenor & soprano saxes, flute, keyboard,  Neil Angilley - keyboards, Guillermo Hill - electric & acoustic guitar, Davide Mantovani -  electric bass

Ian Mann writes;

I was bitterly disappointed to have to miss this performance by Davide Giovannini’s Minas Project after having looked forward to it for a very long time. However the fact that it was already snowing at the time of our usual departure time for Worcester plus the dire warnings that were being issued by the Mert Office resulted in the rather reluctant decision not to attend. Discretion the better part of valour, and all that. In retrospect we might have got away with it, Worcester was on the edge of the worst affected areas - and it was pretty grim a few miles further north. There’s also some high ground between Leominster and Worcester that tends to catch the worst of the weather.

Anyway the gig went ahead, the band made it there and back safely and plenty of people did turn up to make it all worthwhile. I’ll hand over to Music Spoken Here promoter Dave Fuller to give his account of the evening, as published in the weekly MSH newsletter.

 

Giovannini 1 Goretti 0

Minas Project perform explosive set amid fears of “weather bomb”!

The approaching storm Goretti understandably kept some away on Thursday for our first gig of the year, but the band all made it up from London without incident and there were plenty of intrepid locals, including a contingent of Worcester-based Brazilians visiting our club for the first time, to make up a decent audience, rightly expectant of some great live music.

Tonight’s performance featured drummer, vocalist and composer Davide Giovannini, with his Minas Project, dedicated to the artists and music from the Brazilian State of Minas Gerais.

This was Giovannini’s second appearance in Worcester - he also joined us last year with TRYPL, the 7-piece Latin ensemble headed up by Trevor Mires, Ryan Quigley and Paul Booth (although last January’s performance had Sid Gauld depping Quigley on trumpet). Booth was also in tonight’s line-up, making his third appearance on our stage. Bassist Davide Mantovani and keyboard wizard Neil Angilley also returned tonight, after their first appearances with the Tristan Banks Quartet (April 2023) and Fusion Phew! (May 2024) respectively.

Due to the expected bad weather coming in, we decided to go with a single 90-minute set so everyone could get away a little earlier. In discussion with the band beforehand, they had commented that a single, longer set often brings a different energy as they ‘get into it’ more without a break. That energy was certainly present from start to finish!

The set opened with a well-known Milton Nascimento song ‘Travessia’ - a cinematic piece featuring Booth on soprano sax and wordless vocals from Giovannini.

Most of the songs performed were originals taken from the Minas Project album released in 2012, however the next song ‘Around You’ is yet to be recorded. The song launched straight into a jazz-funk tenor sax head with bubbling bass and funky guitar riffs that then settled into a samba groove. Angilley took a blisteringly energetic piano solo that left him visibly exhausted for a moment as the pace slowed and we anticipated the end approaching, before Giovannini’s sticks counted in another round and it all kicked off again with an equally enthralling tenor solo from Booth! (You can watch the whole song play out on our YouTube channel).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5hlffTkqWY

‘Desert Glass’ was inspired by a beautiful, ancient stone found in the desert and, as Giovannini announced, was written for “a very beautiful person”. Although he didn’t reveal that person’s identity this evening, the track on the album is listed as “(for Mirna)”. It featured Booth back on the soprano sax, wordless vocals from Giovannini and finished with a bright, rock-infused solo from Hill.

A pensive piano solo from Angilley introduced ‘The Tide’, a ballad with brushed drums and vocals from Giovannini, while Booth added some chords from his keyboard before harmonising Giovannini’s vocals with gentle, sustained flute.

Originally inspired by the feeling of the wind through your hair as you’re riding a bike, Giovannini invited the audience to interpret ‘Morning Breeze’ however they felt. The piece definitely conveyed a sense of excited movement, with a trundling drum and ride cymbal rhythm as Giovannini’s vocals and Booth’’s soprano sax played the melody through in unison before a delightfully dynamic solo from Booth followed by a drum feature from Giovannini.

Hill’s acoustic guitar introduced ’Momento de Abril’, with Giovannini singing lyrics for the first time this evening, written by Maniero percussionist Bosco De Oliveira. The song included a perky flute solo from Booth. Some of the album had been written in Belo Horizonte, the capital of Minas Gerais and the next song ‘Espelho D’Agua’ was inspired by Giovannini’s time there, being around and listening to the music of Toninho Horta. The lyrics for this song were written by the late, great poet and lyricist Fernando Brant, which Giovannini was very proud to share with us.

There was another breath-taking piano solo from Angilley with ‘Bossa Miniera’, and ‘Ainda’ featured Booth again on soprano.

Perhaps my favourite track from the album is ‘Baiana’, dedicated to the people on the border of Minas Gerais and Baia. Angilley introduced the piece with synth and strings from his keyboard followed by a convincingly dynamic accordion sound, leading into a lively, upbeat dance. The melody, first stated by Booth on soprano sax then carried in unison with Giovannini’s vocalising, got the whole thing shuffling along, with further expressive solos from Booth and Hill.

All too soon and ten beautiful songs in, it was time for the last song of the show. ‘Egberto’ the first track of the album, was chosen to close out the set. It was written for the Brazilian composer, guitarist and pianist Egberto Gismonti and had something of a rock feel about it.

Thankfully the expected snow never materialised in Worcester beyond a light dusting around 6pm followed by rain turning it all to a couple of millimetres of slushiness underfoot, and the intrepid locals had been suitably rewarded with a healthy ‘booster shot’ of stunning, original live Brazilian music to ward off the January blues! The band all got back home safely and Paul Booth made his flight to Milan on Friday to join Incognito for a week-long residency at The Blue Note.

I know many of you were really looking forward to this gig but were unable to make it due to the weather. One of the benefits of our Club Membership is access to the audio recording for up to two weeks after the gig. Davide has kindly given his permission for me to share this, so our Club Members will be sent a link separately and can listen to the whole performance in the comfort of their own home. If you’re interested in becoming a Club Member, everything you need to know is on our website.
http://www.musicspokenhere.club

DAVE FULLER

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