Michele Polga: Tenor Madness

Michele Polga: tenor sax
Marcello Tonolo: piano
Alvise Seggi: double bass

Michele Polga is a modern saxophonist who respects tradition, which he relaunches according to contemporary schemes. He is an interesting composer and a skilled improviser, gifted with a fluid and effective phrasing.

He graduated in saxophone at the Conservatory of Bologna and in jazz music at the Conservatory of Trento with Franco D’Andrea. He attended the summer seminars of Siena Jazz and won an IASJ (International Association School of Jazz) scholarship for a workshop held at the Berklee College of Music in Boston (2001). Since then he has built an interesting career collaborating as a leader and sideman with high-sounding names of Italian and international jazz.

During his career he has played with many important musicians: Fabrizio Bosso, Paolo Fresu, Franco D’Andrea, Roberto Gatto, Carla Bley, Steve Swallow, Maria Schneider, Eliot Zigmund, Ferenc Nemeth, Paul Jeffrey, Ben Riley, Dick Oatts, Charlie Persip, Sam Yahel, Ugonna Okegwo, Anthony Pinciotti, Spike Wilner, Tyler Mitchell, John Riley, Jay Anderson, Dee Dee Bridgewater and many others.

He has participated as a leader and sideman of various musical groups in international and national festivals, including: Cully Jazz Festival (Cully, CH); JZ Spring Festival (Shanghai, China); Jazz y Ratushi (Minsk, Belarus); Italian Jazz Masters (Bratislava); Skopje Jazz Festival (Macedonia); Umbria Jazz Winter (Orvieto); Umbria Jazz (Perugia); Torino Jazz Festival; Met Jazz (Prato); Roma Jazz Festival; Trieste Loves Jazz; “Rumori Mediterranei” Roccella Jazz Festival (Roccella Ionica) and others.

He has played in the most important jazz clubs, including: Smalls (New York, USA); NuBlu (New York, USA); Bar Lunàtico (Brooklyn, NY); Epistrophy Cafè (New York, USA); Ronnie Scott’s (London); JZ Jazz Club (Shanghai, China), Unico Club (Shanghai, China); Satchmo (Maribor, Slovenia), Alexander Platz (Rome); Il Torrione (Ferrara); La Cantina Bentivoglio (Bologna) and many others.

What distinguishes Michele Polga in a very vast international jazz panorama, is his ability to “phrase” and the coherence of his solos. Among his Italian colleagues, he stands out for his ability to translate tradition into a modern key, the high level of his performances and the originality of his compositions. These aspects have placed him in a group of musicians who give unique performances all over the world.