Moncef Genoud
Aqua

Wow, this is serious, folks: the music immediately starts robust and swinging; with 'sturdy' class and romance at the same time: from the first to the last track.

Moncef is a French-speaking Swiss pianist who is blind, and of course, he finds his greatest expressive outlet on the keyboard. He has an outstanding sense of swing, an 'inexplicable thing' that cannot be described with words or mathematical formulas, and comes directly from the European classical piano school, with evident references to the style of Petrucciani and Martial Solal.

From the sparse notes found online, we see that he has had an intense musical and personal life: born in Tunisia and blind from birth, he was adopted by a French-speaking Swiss family and dedicated his life to music from the age of six, starting professionally with his trio at twenty. In the album in question, we find Scott Colley on bass, Bill Stewart on drums, Michael Brecker on saxophone in three pieces (2, 6, 8) while in the final piece, even Dee Dee Bridgewater on vocals (and Frederic Folmer on bass along with Thierry Hochstatter on drums).

We're in classic jazz territory, with a lot of originality and a desire to offer good (excellent) music within the established canons. Long pieces, sophisticated compositions, and warmth make up his stylistic hallmark.

1) ‘Out of the blue’ reflects the title, and the music comes out forcefully like this: from nowhere, directly from this energetic trio through your stereo speakers. Place heavy bricks on the speakers.
2) ‘Aqua’, the title track, is more introspective, and Moncef, the composer of all the tracks except for the three standards, shows a definitely unconventional compositional vein, while still presenting very enjoyable music. Here Brecker delivers the first of three intense performances with great concentration, which is absolutely required by the complex development of the track.
3) ‘Sliding Shadows’ begins with an intro of percussion and bass that gradually gives way to bell-like notes plucked from the piano, leading you to the heart of an elegantly crafted piece.
4) ‘Times Square circle’ is a fast-paced piece, rhythmic and full of impromptu inventions for a complete mastery of the expressive medium. A title evocative of city life seasoned with a lot of swing.
5) ‘Summertime’ benefits from an unusual but modern arrangement. Necessary to make such a well-worn track somehow appealing. Slight alterations of the classic 'form' of the piece and lots of improvisation in between the (few) repetitions of the theme.
6) ‘Lovely Vij’ offers another bed of sonic stars for your evening, providing an inspiring, romantic, and dense duo of piano and sax.
7) ‘Moment’s notice’ here, after a personal introduction, the trio unfolds with extreme speed and precision. A tight dialogue between the three.
8) ‘Mix of Keys’ is objectively a challenging piece to execute, and in the cover notes, Moncef jokingly apologizes for his somewhat... 'particular' pieces and promises lighter scores for next time!!! An excellent performance by the entire group and Brecker ‘monstre as usual’
9) ‘Moncef’s mood’ is the most sentimental and perhaps the most Evans-like piece on the album. Regarding scales and phrasing, Genoud sits, in an ideal range of piano personality, exactly halfway between Keith Jarrett and Bill Evans: sometimes you'll hear things that remind you of one, sometimes the other; always with an outer envelope that recalls the two aforementioned French pianists (Petrucciani and Solal), regarding the way he connects the various parts that make up the tracks (turnarounds, intros, codas, and digressions).
10) ‘Lush life’ is the real ‘icing on the cake’: if so far you’ve enjoyed ‘this beautiful album, you now find yourself strongly wishing for an entire project where both Moncef and Dee Dee can express themselves with complete and fulfilled alchemy. Wonderful performers: an integrated and essential stage presence for her, a solid inventive piano genius for him, interpreters of one of the most beautiful standards in jazz history.

Stop: we won't say more and leave the right appetite intact!

P.S.: In the link provided above, you can listen to two MP3 samples of Moncef Genoud at the bottom. Below is the link to the French and USA pages of Amazon where you can find the artist's albums, in an extreme case.