Max Ionata, Jesper Bodilsen, Martin Maretti Andersen & Martin Sjostedt - Tivoli (2025) Hi-Res

Max Ionata’s been a steady presence on the European jazz scene for a long time — a warm, centered tenor sound, a straight-ahead swing feel, and a way of phrasing that keeps everything clear and unforced. What makes Tivoli stand out isn’t a reinvention of his style but the setting he’s stepped into. He’s leading a Scandinavian rhythm section this time, and that mix — Italian lyricism meeting the lighter, more spacious touch you hear in Nordic jazz — gives the album its shape. With Martin Sjöstedt on piano, Jesper Bodilsen on bass, and Martin Andersen on drums, the group settles in quickly, almost like walking into a room where everyone already knows how the conversation goes.

That’s the charm of the record, and also what defines its boundaries. The band sounds great, the chemistry is clear, and Ionata’s tone is undeniably beautiful — bright, clear, and never breathy. He carries that sound into every setting, and it feels deliberate: a steady signature rather than something that shifts with each tune. The lines keep their shape, the phrasing stays polished, and the overall mood remains consistent whether the band is in a ballad or a mid-tempo groove. It’s a clean, unified approach that suits the music, but it also keeps the playing firmly within the same lines, even when a little roughness or surprise might have opened things up.

The opener, Sergio Ruben Aranda’s “Canción para Sara,” sets the mood right away. Piano and drums ease into a light samba feel, and Ionata comes in with that clear, right-down-the-middle sound — without ever sounding forced. Sjöstedt’s solo swings with an easy touch, and Bodilsen’s bass lines stay smooth and supportive. Andersen shifts from sticks to mallets partway through, and the change gives the tune a new texture.