Julien Colarossi Archives | Italian Fusion Festival

We are happy to introduce the final act of our lineup. This year the Italian Fusion Festival presents The Julien Colarossi Organ Trio.

Despite the name, the Julien Colarossi Organ Trio is led by three distinct voices, working together in harmony and syncopation to make ‘Music’ the only real leader of the band.

This tight and groovy band draws inspiration from the straight ahead jazz classic organ trio sound of Jimmy Smith, all the way to the more modern Larry Goldings trio.The rhythm section features the very experienced Spanish drummer Gonzalo Del Val and the Irish Organ player Darragh Hennessy making for a very tasteful, solid and synchronized unit.

Floating in and out with the rhythm section, Julien Colarossi is known as a ‘dyed in the wool jazzer’ but he also brings a lyrical quality to his guitar playing from his roots deep in the mountains of beautiful “Val Di Comino” in Italy.

Their longstanding collaboration is quite evident in the original material that the band presents. The band recorded their first album in March 2019.

Julien has collaborated with many of Ireland’s finest jazz musicians, his professionalism, his ductility and his dedication to music has made him one of the most hired guitarist in the Irish scene. At the moment he’s actively involved in these projects: the Julien Colarossi Quartet, Francesco Turrisi Trio, Phisqa, the Riona Sally Hartman’s Band, Edel Meade Quintet, the Hot House Big Band.

Just for the Italian Fusion Festival the Julien Colarossi Organ Trio will play a few songs with the Irish jazz singer from Cork Laoise Leahy.

Francesco Turrisi

We are happy to introduce the jazz part of our lineup. This year the Italian Fusion Festival presents Francesco Turrisi Trio.

The Francesco Turrisi Trio is Francesco Turrisi (Accordion), Julien Colarossi (Guitar) and Barry Donohue (Bass).

If a musician is defined by the company he keeps then it is little wonder that Italian pianist Francesco Turrisi skirts facile categorization. The Turin-born, Dublin-based pianist and multi-instrumentalist has played with former Miles Davis reedsman Dave Liebman, flamenco icon Pepe El Habichuela, kaval player Theodosii Spassov and singer extraordinaire Maria Pia de Vito. He is equally at home playing with jazz veteran Gianluigi Trovesi as he is with Irish sean-nós singer Roisin El Safty and with tarantella specialist Lucilla Galeazzi. Turrisi has toured with Bobby McFerrin, interpreted the music of Steve Reich with Bang on a Can All Stars and, since 2004, has been a core member of celebrated early music ensemble L’ Arpeggiata. And at heart, he is a jazz improviser.

Turrisi, it’s safe to say, is a musical polyglot par excellence and it’s natural that he feels at home in multiple musical settings for his vocabulary is a colorful weave of early music, pan-Mediterranean modal melodies and European flavored jazz. In spite of his numerous collaborations it’s as a leader that Turrisi has earned his spurs. His four beautifully crafted solo albums and two co-led releases have garnered widespread critical acclaim.

Originally from Settefrati, Italy, guitarist and composer Julien Colarossi graduated with a first-class honours degree in jazz performance from Newpark Music Centre in Dublin, Ireland has established himself as one of the most exciting young guitarists to emerge in recent years on the Irish contemporary jazz scene. He is gaining a strong reputation not only as a performer but also as a composer and teacher. Julien is a highly versatile and what is known as a ‘dyed in the wool jazzer’ and brings a lyrical quality to his guitar playing from his roots deep in the mountains of beautiful “Val Di Comino” in Italy.

Barry Donohue is one of the most in-demand bassists on the Dublin scene, equally adept on the acoustic upright and electric guitar versions of his instrument.

Website: http://www.francescoturrisi.com/