There is a blonde he has put a spell on Stefano De Martino. She is 23 years old, born in Naples, lives in Scafati and, as a specialty, plays the guitar (very well). He is one of the most popular names among young Neapolitan artists: Alessandra Tumolillo. Over 62,000 followers on Instagram, a video – in which he plays Chesta sera by Nino D'Angelo – that has reached 1 million and 600,000 views, a talent for reinterpreting Neapolitan classics in a jazz key and already two participations in “Bar Stella “. », the Rai Due show, hosted by the showman Stefano De Martino, originally from Torre Annunziata. “I ended up on TV by chance – says Alessandra – Stefano started following me on Instagram some time ago. And through this social network he contacted me, complimented me and agreed that we would meet in person if the opportunity arose. Well, I can say he kept his word. Because on the occasion of the first episode of Bar Stella there was a gap in the lineup and to fill it, he thought of me at the last minute. When he called me, I had just recovered from Covid. Being the fatalist that I am, I thought my time had truly come.
The meeting with Lina Sastri
On television, at De Martino's request, since it was All Saints' Eve, Alessandra hugs the guitar and sings Munasterio 'e Santa Chiara. Of course in his own way: reinterpretation in a jazz key. A success. So much so that her followers on social media multiplied and De Martino invited her to the show for the second time. And this time, to compliment her, it is (also) the special guest of the evening: Lina Sastri. “His compliments really gave me a unique feeling. It was an honor to receive it from an artist like her, an incentive to keep getting better.”
The musician family
The fact is that Alessandra, although she is still very young, has not been able to do without her guitar for over ten years. Born into a family of musicians, father Sandro a violinist and mother Anna a pianist, both graduates of San Pietro a Majella, she attended the same Neapolitan Conservatory last year. And in 2024 she will graduate with a degree in jazz guitar: “Music has been with me since I was little, when I inevitably followed my parents when they went to concerts.” Then, at the age of 12, it was my father who introduced me to it for the first time guitar in his hand. He, who is a multi-instrumentalist and also played with Pino Daniele, taught me the secrets for playing with chords for the first time. Something that, now that I think about it, saved my life when my parents decided to separate. However, after high school, it was my mother who wanted me to dedicate myself to the guitar and jazz at the conservatory: partly as a reaction, because it is a music that, in contrast to what she plays, is classical, leaves a lot of freedom is “very rigid”.
The classics in a jazz key
But how did the idea of reinterpreting Neapolitan classics in a jazz key come about? “In reality, I was pushed onto this path by people who listened to me from time to time, even on social media. With them I have always managed to build an equal relationship of give and take. And I must say that they were right: they sensed the path that, in my opinion, is the truest to strengthen my artistic personality. Now the guitar is a kind of extension of my body. And even when I study a piece alone in my room, it gives me a very strong feeling: it's a continuous experiment, as if I'm constantly meeting a new person. Alessandra is also a composer. His role model in this regard is Claudio Mattone, author of numerous successes (from Ancora by Eduardo De Crescenzo to Il cuore è un zingaro to the Scugnizzi soundtrack). But his dream is to bring “a bit of America to Naples on the notes of PJ Morton, Bruno Major, Allen Stone and Stevie Wonder, to bring the old sounds into the contemporary world, perhaps in a duet with George Benson, because he is the guitarist who…” Most people approach Pino Daniele. “For a Neapolitan with a guitar in his hand like me,” concludes Alessandra, “it even seems superfluous to specify it, but he is my legend.”