Reviews
[Musillami's music] is honest, frequently surprising and consistently exciting. |
— Ron Wynn, Jazz Times |
...count on Musillami to offer the willing listener something a bit different than the tried and true. |
— Glenn Astarita, All Music Guide |
Musillami commands attention, not with force, but with sophistication and understatement. |
— Bill Donaldson, Cadence |
One of the more imaginative guitarists in jazz and one who's put out more than his fair share of worthwhile recordings, Musillami is not as well-known as he should be. He's also a player who has shown a progression with each album he's put out. |
— Robert Ianpollo, Signal to Noise |
Quietly, while many people have been distracted by flashier and/or better promoted guitarists, journeyman Michael Musillami has gone his own way and become a distinctive, exemplary stylist. |
— Ken Waxman, Jazz Weekly |
With every new project, Musillami asserts himself as one of the premier modern jazz guitar players on the current scene...an original voice on an instrument lacking in original thinking these days. |
— Michael G. Nastos, WEMU-FM |
Musillami seemingly cannot play a cliché lick on the guitar — he doesn't so much 'play guitar' as he makes music on an instrument that just happens to be an electric guitar. |
— Seth Rogovoy, Berkshire Eagle |
The group is led by Michael Musillami whose guitar playing and impeccable production work as owner/manager of Playscape Records have him earned acclaim in many of today's leading jazz journals. Musillami's attention to musical ability and the chemistry of ensemble members allows him to consistently align himself with musicians who can tastefully interpret his repertoire while still putting their own stamp on it. |
— Brattleboro Reformer |
Musillami certainly deserves much more attention as a guitar stylist and composer. |
— Nils Jacobson, AllAboutJazz |
His clean guitar tone, ability to rise over active rhythm sections or dig deeply into ballads, and often percussive background playing show not only his influences but also his commitment to the overall sound of a group. His own compositions mine not only the fertile vein of classic jazz but the outer reaches of creative music. |
— Richard Kamins, Hartford Courant |
Why Musillami, a critical favorite, continues to fly under mainstream radar is anyone's guess. Possessing a rich, hollow-body tone and lightning-quick, angular phrasing, his singular aesthetic charts a serpentine course from Grant Green to Joe Morris. His writing blends pithy melodies and intricate arrangements with magnanimous group interplay and adventurous improvisations that are among the finest new music can offer. |
— Troy Collins, AllAboutJazz.com |
Musillami is a refreshingly swinging outcat who plays long lines with angular intervals with lyricism and intelligence... |
— Paul de Barros, DownBeat |
Musillami is a superior guitarist with a fine, fluent sound that mixes both chords and linear lines. |
— John McDonough, DownBeat |
A Modern-Day Jazz Master |
— Roger Levesque, Edmonton Journal |
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Discography
Flight of Evangeline |
Michael Musillami, Rich Syracuse & Jeff Siegel |
09.16.2022 |
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Pictures |
Michael Musillami & Peter Madsen |
10.06.2020 |
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Dig, (music inspired by and dedicated to Bill Evans) |
Michael Musillami & Rich Syracuse |
10.01.2019 |
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Life Anthem |
Michael Musillami Trio +2 |
05.01.2018 |
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Bird Calls |
Michael Musillami & Rich Syracuse |
10.31.2017 |
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Of the Night |
Michael Musillami & Rich Syracuse |
10.01.2016 |
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Zephyr |
Michael Musillami Trio |
10.06.2015 |
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Pride (2 CD) |
Michael Musillami Trio w/ Kris Davis, Jimmy Greene & Mark Feldman |
09.16.2014 |
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Mettle |
Michael Musillami Trio + 4 |
02.07.2012 |
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Old Tea |
Michael Musillami Trio |
04.27.2010 |
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From Seeds |
Michael Musillami Trio + 3 |
05.19.2009 |
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The Treatment |
Michael Musillami Trio w/ Mark Feldman |
09.25.2007 |
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Fragile Forms |
Michael Musillami's Dialect |
09.12.2006 |
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Dachau |
Michael Musillami Trio |
09.06.2005 |
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Spirits |
Michael Musillami Octet |
09.07.2004 |
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Those Times |
Michael Musillami Quartet |
12.02.2003 |
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Beijing |
Michael Musillami Trio |
05.27.2003 |
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Pivot |
Michael Musillami/Mario Pavone Quintet |
12.03.2002 |
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Part Pitbull |
Michael Musillami (with Peter Madsen) |
04.19.2002 |
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Op-Ed |
Mario Pavone/Michael Musillami Quartet |
07.22.2001 |
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Motion Poetry |
Mario Pavone/Michael Musillami Quartet |
05.01.2001 |
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Event #6 |
Ted Levine |
02.02.2001 |
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Archives |
Michael Musillami featuring Thomas Chapin |
01.05.2001 |
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Perception |
Michael Musillami with the Playscape Quintet |
01.05.2001 |
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Mar's Bars |
Michael Musillami featuring Thomas Chapin |
02.15.2000 |
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Groove Teacher |
Michael Musillami featuring Thomas Chapin |
02.15.2000 |
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