Guido Manusardi Quartet -

The Guido Manusardi Quartet was an Italian post-bop combo behind the 1974 Amigo release Romanian Impressions, followed by the 1978 Atlantic album Namymanu, recorded with Polish saxist Zbigniew Namysłowski.

Members: Guido Manusardi (piano), Red Mitchell (bass), Petur Östlund (percussion), Lennart Åberg (soprano saxophone)

Background

In March 1974, pianist Guido Manusardi led a Stockholm quartet with bassist Red Mitchell, drummer Pétur “Island” Östlund, and saxophonist Lennart Åberg on tenor and soprano saxophones.

Manusardi, born Dec. 3, 1935, in Chiavenna, studied piano with Luigia Ceradini in Milan. He worked in Switzerland, Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark, and Sweden from 1954, then settled in Bucharest in 1967 and recorded with saxophonist Dan Mândrilă and bassist Johnny Răducanu.

Mitchell moved to Stockholm in 1968 after work with Red Norvo, Gerry Mulligan, and Hampton Hawes. Åberg joined Radiojazzgruppen in 1966 and co-founded Rena Rama in 1972 with pianist Bobo Stenson, bassist Palle Danielsson, and drummer Bengt Berger. Östlund began teaching at Stockholm’s Royal College of Music in 1973, two years after his move to Sweden from Iceland.

The quartet played Stockholm’s Guldhatten club on March 23, 1974, with a set recorded for the eventual live album Givin’s Livin’. Manusardi brought the same lineup into a Stockholm studio on March 24 with producers Jan Boquist and Per-Anders Boquist and engineer Björn Norén to record Romanian Impressions for Amigo.

Discography: