PEACEFUL

The Italian-Swiss saxophonist, composer and arranger Claudio Pallaro unveils his new album, ‘Peaceful’. The result of a personal journey of introspection that began some twenty years ago, this album sounds like ‘weightless music’, a unique blend of sounds and meaning carried by a quartet of remarkable unity.

Finding peace amidst the turmoil
For Claudio Pallaro, the album’s title is to be taken literally: a state of calm. Practising yoga and Zen meditation daily, the composer places this quest for serenity at the heart of his life and his art.
“The aim is to position oneself in the eye of the storm: when the hustle and bustle and stress of the modern world are never far away, to manage, despite everything, to remain calm and at peace. ‘Peaceful’. Even if, at times, one can be caught up in powerful gusts of wind.” – Claudio Pallaro

This duality runs throughout the album. Far from being linear or purely contemplative jazz, ‘Peaceful’ thrives on breaks, a narrative full of contrasts and unexpected twists.

A quartet with a rare chemistry
Tailor-made for a top-class quartet, Claudio Pallaro’s music shines through its constant interplay. The saxophonist and improviser is perfectly in tune with his partners, alternating between being an inspired soloist, a melodist and a passionate rhythm section player. Alongside him, three exceptional musicians shape the soundscape. Pierre Perchaud (guitar) weaves subtle counterpoints of rare poetic beauty from start to finish. Hubert Dupont (double bass) provides an elegant foundation with a deeply resonant, woody tone. Luc Insenmann (drums) orchestrates each track with magnificent musicality, infusing them with a vibrant uniqueness.

A musical narrative in motion: Through the repertoire
The journey begins quite naturally with the title track, ‘Peaceful’ – a veritable aesthetic manifesto for the album that lays the foundations for a timeless dialogue, imbued with a profound sense of serenity. But this tranquillity is merely a prelude: the quartet swiftly glides into the false calm of ‘Mer d’Huile’, a track with a double meaning where the horizontal flow of a soothing melody is magnificently countered by the hyperactivity of a bubbling rhythm section, reminding us that one must always be wary of deep currents. This duality between the infinitely vast and our inner turmoil continues in ‘Cosmology’, a piece of sophisticated musical architecture. Through its complex harmonic meanderings, the track stands as a metaphor for our ever-changing lives, which nevertheless always end up merging into a single, coherent whole.

The hustle and bustle of the modern world reasserts itself in ‘Tutto a Posto’, a playful nod to the composer’s Italian roots. Beneath its initially tranquil melody, the track shifts into a dizzying, saturated finale, ironically emphasising that ‘everything’s fine’ is never permanent. To escape this tension, Claudio Pallaro invites us to take to the skies with ‘Floating’. Conceived as pure levitation above the Earth, this track is built on an unconventional sequence of chords, offering the dizzying perspective of an astronaut marvelling at the beauty of his planet yet frightened by the chaos that humankind is wreaking upon it.

Claudio Pallaro’s subtle compositional style shines through on ‘Three but One’. It is a geometric work built upon unusual three-bar phrases which nevertheless merge into perfect unity, culminating in a final drum solo of absolute freedom, unbound by any thematic constraints. The quartet then explores the boundaries of pure perception with ‘Apesanteur Sensorielle’; written partly in 9/8 time, this piece illustrates that rare moment when human beings cease to label their sensations (whether pleasant or unpleasant) and simply experience them, even if this lightness suddenly transforms into an almost physical heaviness. The vital energy finally culminates in ‘Equivibration’, a high-tension track where an incisive melody is balanced by calm interludes that are, paradoxically, highly active, harnessing the collective’s strength to achieve total interaction. The circle is then completed with ‘Peace of Mind’, a suspended and refined reinterpretation of the end of the first movement. The turmoil fades away, the mind finds peace. The album ends in peace.

Peaceful
Mer d”huile
Cosmology
Tutto A Posto
Floating
Three But One
Apesanteur Sensorielle
Equivibration
Peace Of Mind

All compositions by Claudio Pallaro
Published by Editions Amoc

Claudio Pallaro (tenor saxophone)
Pierre Perchaud (guitar)
Hubert Dupont (double bass)
Luc Isenmann (drums)

Produced by Jazz En Face
Artistic Director Frédéric Loiseau
Recorded and mixed by Arthur Gouret at Studio Sextan
Mastered by Raphael Jonin
Graphic Design by Corinne Garino
Released by Juste Une Trace
Release date : 02-10-2026