For Antonio Farao's maiden voyage for Criss Cross, the Milan-based pianist convened an equivalently virtuosic trio comprising bassist John Patitucci and drummer Jeff Ballard, presented them with eight originals and two standards, and let them loose. Each member operates at a creative peak on this lyric, kinetic, beautifully proportioned 65-minute recital.

It's Farao's sixth trio album, but his first since Domi, from 2011, when he documented ten compositions with bassist Darryl Hall and drummer Andre Ceccarelli, showcasing his mastery of counterpoint, endless melodic invention and well-calibrated touch.

Titled Tributes, Farao's Criss Cross debut is closer in feel and attitude to the albums Black Inside, Thorn and Next Stories, recorded for Enja between 1998 and 2001, where Farao joined forces, respectively, with top-of-the-pyramid, New York-seasoned masters Ira Coleman and Jeff Watts, Drew Gress and Jack DeJohnette, and Ed Howard and Gene Jackson. Functioning completely as a peer, he addresses the dialects of his pianistic heroes - universal "postbop" influences as Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea, McCoy Tyner, Keith Jarrett, Bill Evans and Kenny Kirkland, as well as Oscar Peterson, Erroll Garner, Lennie Tristano, and Martial Solal - on their own terms of engagement, with the fluency of a native speaker. He assimilates their styles, refracts them into a personal argot, alchemising challenging rhythms and highbrow harmony into graceful melodies. He eschews ironic deflection and gratuitous structural complication, sustaining an attitude of in-the-moment creation and a fierce will to swing.

The Album was recorded July 26, 2023 at Studio de Meudon, Paris. Recording engineer Julien Basseres. Sound engineer Mike Marciano did the mixing and mastering at Systems Two in NYC. Photography by Marco Glaviano.

Antonio Farao: piano

John Patitucci: bass

Jeff Ballard: drums