Home » Jazz Musicians » Roberto Magris

Roberto Magris

Born in Trieste, in Italy, in 1959, after a career of forty-five years with concerts all over the world, he is a renowned and appreciated musician on the international jazz scene today. He has 42 recordings to his credit, including 3 CDs for the Soulnote/Black Saint label and 26 CDs in the USA for the Kansas City's JMood label, together with musicians such as Art Davis (bassist for John Coltrane), Albert Tootie Heath, Ira Sullivan, Idris Muhammad, Herb Geller, Brian Lynch (2 Grammy Award Winner), Mark Colby, Tony Lakatos, Eric Jacobson, Sam Reed, Paul Carr, Jim Mair, Eric Hochberg, Hermon Mehari, Logan Richardson, Kendall Moore, Brandon Lee, Alfredo Chacon, Rodolfo Zuniga and others. In the USA, he has mostly frequented the jazz scenes of Kansas City, of which he is also an honorary citizen, Los Angeles, Miami and Chicago, and has directed numerous groups and played as a bandleader in famous jazz venues such as The Jazz Bakery in Los Angeles, Catalina Jazz Club in Hollywood, The Blue Room in Kansas City, WDNA Jazz Gallery in Miami, The Jazz Showcase in Chicago, The Jazz Estate in Milwaukee, The Caspe Terrace in Des Moines, The Love Jazz Club in Omaha, The Schwartz’s Jazz Point in Cincinnati. His CDs Live in Miami, Shuffling Ivories, Match Point and Duo & Trio, were voted by several American critics among the Best Jazz Albums of 2018, 2020, 2021, 2022, and his CD Suite! passed the first round of selection for the Jazz Grammy Award nomination in 2019. In Europe, he has directed the Europlane Orchestra (a central-European jazz venture sponsored by INCE-Central European Initiative), his Italian quartet, the Gruppo Jazz Marca, the Alfabeats Nu Jazz band and, in the period 2016-2020, he was active with the MUH Trio (Magris-Uhlir-Helesic Trio), with a hundred concerts and 2 CDs recorded in Prague, where the trio had its base. In 2024 he re-started after two decades his Roberto Magris Europlane group with some of the best musicians from Central Europe and recorded live the Cd Freedom is peace. In the same year he also recorded the Cd Lovely day(s), the first solo piano album in his career, the Cd Let’s change! in Chicago, and started a new collaboration with Croatian saxophonist Denis Razz, recording the album In Action. In 2025 Magris has released his first solo piano album Lovely Day(s). Numerous interviews and reviews of his CDs were published by the major jazz magazines and websites, including Down Beat, JazzTimes, Cadence, Jazziz, All About Jazz, New York City Jazz Record, Jazzwax, Riffides, Chicago Jazz Magazine, Jazz Inside, Jazzhot , Jazz Journal International, Jazzwise, Citizen Jazz, Jazzpodium, Concerto, Union Disk  Japan and many others. A profile of Magris is also included in the book The Jazz Stories Project, published in the USA by Cadence Media LLC in 2018.

Read more

Tags

Roberto Magris piano Trieste Jmood Records Kansas City Soul Note Italy Slovenia
16
Album Review

Roberto Magris / Denis Razz Quartet: In Action

Read "In Action" reviewed by Dan McClenaghan


It is not easy for a European jazz artist to establish a notable profile in the United States, but Italian pianist Roberto Magris has done just that, in part via the tried and true “just show up" method of operation. It is necessary to show up with the drive, determination and talent to pull the success off.He shows up in his work with Kansas City's JMood Records. He shows up as a bandleader in venues in Chicago and ...

9
Album Review

Roberto Magris: Lovely Day (s)

Read "Lovely Day (s)" reviewed by Dan McClenaghan


Italian pianist Roberto Magris began his journey to the United States--specifically, Kansas City--in 2007, although his recording career began in 1990, in Europe. He expresses himself, for the most part, in the bebop mode--good old-fashioned bop. His inspirations: Lee Morgan, Elmo Hope, Cannonball Adderl