DEFINIRE SIGNIFICA LIMITARE

I really like this album. I bought it in 1996 from the hands of the artist after a "clinic" where he showed the qualities of a new Martin guitar... "Definire significa limitare", to define means to limit... The title stems from a concept that belongs to Zen culture... You can find here three new pieces (the title track, "Ciò che mi piace di te" and "Vico Concordia") and new versions of pieces already recorded on Riccardo Zappa's previous albums. This album features a brand new guitar, a 12 strings Martin J1240 (except the title track, featuring a Martin D 1218) and this guitar, "portrayed" veiled and surrounded by flowers on the album cover, is the real protagonist of this work.

The style of Riccardo Zappa is different from that of other 12 strings acoustic guitar wizards like Leo Kottke... It's derived from his classical studies, no pickers or "slide neck- riding". In some tracks there are slow tempos and pauses exalting effects like chorus and delay and creating a delicate and dreamy atmosphere ("Fondali", "Princess' Dream" or "Mar di Marmara"). In other tracks ("Slappin'/Cooper & M.P.", "Minuti", "Audition Delay") the touch of Riccardo Zappa is more aggressive and every now and then it reminds me of Michael Hedges. The album offers a wide spectrum of the possibilities of the instrument and of the technical skills of the musician and I think it's a "must-have" for every owner of a 12 strings acoustic guitar...

Perhaps this album is not essential in a prog collection, after all it's just a collection of acoustic guitar solos, not a symphonic rock one, but it's really good and I think it's worth listen to it, even for the "non-guitarists"...