A Chat With Denise Mangiardi (03.09.24)
Award-winning jazz singer-songwriter and classical composer Denise Mangiardi has been a mainstay of the music industry for almost three decades. We spoke with the gifted musician about her return to the music scene after a five-year hiatus, her new album, On The Brink, and more.
OSR: After a five-year hiatus, what inspired you to return to the studio and create On The Brink? Was there a particular moment or experience that reignited your passion for music?
Mangiardi: I have always been busy creating music. Of course, Covid did not help but I took that time to go to Sophia, Bulgaria to get my masters in film scoring from the Film Scoring Academy Of Europe. During the period following the program, I spent a lot of time working on different film projects.
OSR: You mentioned that you wanted to create an album that is both relaxing and inspiring, addressing the range of emotions we’re all experiencing in these challenging times. How did you approach this delicate balance in your compositions?
Mangiardi: I like to use the orchestra and or the bass and piano to create a feeling of intensity or create a wailing and a tense kind of sound in the strings for both ‘On the Brink’ and ‘Portrait of a Lady’. I love to do these kinds of things so that they would contribute to the overall sentiment of the music.
OSR: New Orleans played a significant role in the recording of On The Brink. How did your time in the city influence the sound and emotional depth of this album?
Mangiardi: When you spend enough time in a place, you eventually absorb many of the intimate musical nuances that come with the sound of the city, so to speak. More importantly, are the musical relationships you build with other musicians, to the point where you are familiar with their style of playing. This will always come through the music when you leave enough space to allow the musicians to add what is innately natural to their particular playing style. So usually, I do not tell them much at all before a recording. I just know how they will sound because I know their music so well. So, I trust that whatever it is that they do, will come through very well.
OSR: Collaborating with such an impressive lineup of musicians, including members of the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, must have been a special experience. How did their contributions shape the final sound of the album?
Mangiardi: The musicians as I said previously are really amazing and I am so blessed to have the opportunity to perform with them again. Playing with the LPO is really amazing and is always one of my top thrills. There is nothing so great to me as the sound of the strings in the studio. It is wonderful.
Mangiardi: I know these songs so well and they always draw me in, no matter who performs them. They also were the kind of songs that I thought would sound great with strings and sound even greater with Michael Pelleras’ piano playing. His style is so unique. He reharmonized the songs and I had such a great time orchestrating the strings to his harmonic choices. It was really fun. I used to perform ‘Every Time We Say Goodbye’ very often when I was performing in New Orleans with Michael, so I knew it would be a good choice for this kind of album. When I hear Frank Sinatra sing ‘In The Wee Small Hours, it gets me every time. That was a very large contributing factor to my decision to pick this song.
OSR: ‘The Walk’, inspired by your time on the Isle of Wight, opens the album with a serene and introspective tone. Can you share more about the inspiration behind this track and the journey it represents?
Mangiardi: On my previous album Brown Book I had spent two weeks on the Isle of Wight. At that time, I spent the entire time walking and singing the melodies into my phone for nearly the entire album. It is a wonderful place to walk and it is so inspiring. It is difficult not to be inspired in a place surrounded by gorgeous green fields and ocean views. It is a spectacular place and very romantic to me. But that is another story.
OSR: The title track ‘On The Brink’ carries a message of resilience and positivity. How do you see this message resonating with listeners, especially in the current global climate?
This is such an important question. I really believe that many of us are not only disillusioned by the current state of affairs in the world, but we are feeling lost and hopeless. It is a feeling that we are unable to make a difference, or that our own individual powers are not enough to control the amount of chaos that is going on daily. I wanted to say, that no matter how hopeless it can appear to be, we have the capacity to work through that by allowing the unexpected beauties of life to come through. An example: A single act of kindness from another human can completely change our day. I used the analogy of an eagle, which actually did come to me one day in Australia. It was without a doubt one of the most spectacular events in my life. I often think of that moment when I am feeling lost. I wanted to share this message to others. I wanted to say that in the dark, very often, small streams of light come through that can actually change the course of how we think and see things. Also, the eagle is symbolic of a great beautiful beast that goes through very bad storms, but we often do not see that part of their journey. Only their magnificence. So I am trying to say that we all go through storms, but there is always somewhere an element of hope.
OSR: ‘Portrait of a Lady’ blends acoustic guitar, orchestral strings, and electronic elements to create a rich, layered sound. What was the creative process behind this track, and how did you envision the fusion of these diverse musical elements?
Mangiardi: With ‘Portrait of a Lady’ I wanted very much to combine a wailing sound in the strings similar to crying so that it would have an impact of the initial frustration of dealing with the madness that is going on; kind of like ‘The Scream’. I decided to ask Arthur Brouns to add an electronic bed because that would represent the world, the modern world. I chose a model sound with a lot of dissonances such as sharp 5 chords to add a minor and clustered dissonance. The dissonance would add a texture to the minor sound to create a yearning somehow. I was incredibly happy with the outcome of the song, especially with the addition of Luca Bascagins’s gorgeous guitar playing. Between Arthur and Luca, they really made my dream and all that I had imagined come to fruition.
OSR: You’ve dedicated the track ‘Celeste’ to your late sister. How did you channel your emotions into this piece and what do you hope listeners take away from it?
Mangiardi: It took me many years to write the song. I had had enough time to detach myself emotionally from my sister, however, it still was not an easy thing to do. So, I decided to write a song about her personality instead of my own feelings of missing her. I chose a waltz to mimic her walking, a kind of waltz in the forest so to speak. I was hoping that many others who have lost loved ones, will identify with the intrinsic power of a single soul on this earth and how they can impact our worlds. Also, I loved the image of her cursing and swearing and drinking a beer. I think that brings many of us to the present time.
OSR: With On The Brink being your latest work after the acclaimed Brown Book, how do you feel your music has evolved over the years? What new dimensions or themes do you feel you’ve explored in this album?
Mangiardi: It has been my desire to create an entire album of strings as orchestration is something I love. I thought that by creating an album of ballads, it would be easier to incorporate this kind of writing. But it was equally important to me to write about what is going on in the world. Even though ‘On the Brink’ and ‘ Portrait of a Lady’ border on different styles I tried to keep the string writing succent to what would hopefully be an evocative kind of string sound. I am really happy with the outcome. I am glad that I kept a conceptual idea going as that also helped me glue my ideas together for the project.
Many thanks to Denise Mangiardi for speaking with us. Find out more about Denise Mangiardi on her official website, Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), Instagram and Spotify.
