MERIDIAN 71
Meridian 71 is a cross-cultural music project created and led by Giuseppe Paradiso since 2011. The project name comes from Boston's longitude: the 71st meridian that passes precisely through the eastern part of the city.
“Boston is the location where I met musicians from different parts of the globe. We are deeply connected and spoke the common language of music together”, reflects Paradiso. “It felt like I had known for a long time that at some point in my life I would have met musicians just like them, way before moving across the Atlantic in 2008. Meridian 71 became the creative laboratory and space to develop this music.”
Meridian 71 is more than a conceptual band; it’s a dynamic and ever-changing musical project with a revolving lineup and a driving vision to use music and sound to inspire, bridge cultures and create links within different traditions.
Blending music genres that range from jazz and improvised music to Mediterranean and West African styles, Meridian 71 released three albums (Otherness Collection, Metropolitan Sketches and Parallel Dimensions) featuring all original compositions by Giuseppe Paradiso, and an eclectic and international ensemble of well-established musicians.
Their latest album Parallel Dimensions (2022) was released on the Ubuntu Music record label (London, UK), and distributed worldwide by The Orchard (Sony). Their music has been air-played and reviewed worldwide.
Meridian 71 has received support by The Boston Foundation and the Barr Foundation, the Mayor’s Office of Arts and Culture and the City of Boston, Robert Davoli & Eileen McDonagh, The Record Co. and a considerable number of international supporters and fans.
‘Parallel Dimensions steers the listener's imagination through a luxurious multicultural tapestry woven in music by drummer, composer, arranger and producer Giuseppe Paradiso and his sextet’ - Chris M. Slawecki, ALL ABOUT JAZZ (Read full review)
Boston’s popular cross-cultural music project Meridian 71, led by the versatile Italian drummer and composer Giuseppe Paradiso, to release 3rd album Parallel Dimensions on April 15, 2022 (Read full press release)
“Metropolitan Sketches” - Live in studio.
“Kaizen” - Live in studio.
“Memories of the future” - Live in studio.
PHOTO BY SAMANTHA BRUCE.
From left to right: Phil Sargent, Utar Artun, Giuseppe Paradiso, Mark Zaleski, James Hazlewood-Dale, Malick Ngom.
“Meridian 71 combines jazz with Mediterranean and West African influences to conjure cinematic soundscapes of a multicultural home on Metropolitan Sketches”
“METROPOLITAN SKETCHES” - RELEASE SHOW AT REGATTABAR JAZZ CLUB (Feb 13, 2020), w/ special guest PHIL GRENADIER on trumpet & flugelhorn.
Live at WBUR CitySpace in Boston, MA (2022).
Live at The Press Room in Portsmouth, NH (2021).
“Nomvula” - Live in Studio (2018).
"Casamance" - Giuseppe Paradiso & Malick Ngom.
“Tuntkah The Nomad King”
“Music that talks to the listener, rich of several and different cultural elements that Giuseppe and his magnificent band blend wonderfully together with sweetness and energy. Encounter and fusion of melodies, harmonies and rhythms that evoke arcane atmospheres, intense sentiments and distant landscapes, but strongly present and real. Music that makes you travel beyond the boundaries of imagination to offer you swirls of deep emotions.”
“Una musica che parla a chi l’ascolta, ricca di svariati e differenti elementi culturali che Giuseppe e la sua splendida band riesce a mescolare meravigliosamente con dolcezza ed energia. Incontro e fusione di melodie, armonie e ritmi che evocano atmosfere arcane, sentimenti intensi e paesaggi lontani, ma fortemente presenti e vivamente reali.
Musica che ti fa viaggiare oltre i confini dell’immaginazione per regalarti vortici di emozioni profonde.”
