Carlo Mombelli Prisoner of Strange

´Abstractions` – On the other side 1986 (Shifty Records)

Carlo Mombelli and Charlie Mariano - Happy Sad 1992 (ITM Pacific)

Carlo Mombelli and Charlie Mariano – Dancing in a Museum 1996 (ITM Pacific)

Carlo Mombelli and the Prisoners of Strange – Bats in the Belfry 1997 (Baobab art records)

Carlo Mombelli and the Prisoners of Strange – When serious babies dance. 2004 (Instinct Africaine)

Carlo Mombelli and the Prisoners of Strange – I stared into my head – (Instinct Africaine 2007)

Carlo Mombelli and the Prisoners of Strange – DVD Live at Fort Hare (Melt2000 records)

Carlo Mombelli's music is that of a quintessential Prisoner of Strange. It's visionary emotional and experimental, in a society that doesn't applaud artistry and integrity. His music sits on the cusp of sanity, where madness and brilliance share space, where true art resides. Mombelli has found in his music the expressive soul of the developing world mixed with the technical profoundity of the classical world. Sunday Independent 2001


Edwin Mears	Siya Makuzeni	Carlo Mombelli	Johnny Fourie

Carlo Mombelli & THE PRISONERS OF STRANGE

He has booked out the Wits downstairs theatre (120 seater) every Saturday night throughout the months of February and March. He will be performing his uniquely collaborative and expressive style of jazz and improvised music together with other artists such as Siya Makuzeni. Siya has such a beautiful warm voice that reaches all the shades of its frequency through the masterful compositions of Carlo.

"Rules don't make works of art. Works of art make rules." Debussy

“If the music was composed or improvised from that inner child that we search for, pure and innocent, listening to the voice of your muse, then we are on the right track of beauty. Art must uplift you, transport you, challenge you, touch your inner being, bring some form of hope and faith and a sense that it is some sort of a miracle. An artist tells his side of the story in truth, sad or good. He tells his story of the everyday life through his eyes. Picasso's ´Guernica` is such an example of a great work,” says Carlo Mombelli.

“The main way of composition is through improvisation. It is important to jam a bit after practicing. Improvisation produces composition. Improvisation means spontaneous in the moment: right then and there.”

“Music comes from intuition. We've got our subconscious which is our library for information. When fighting in the martial arts they repeat the movements. They are filling up the subconscious with movements. They always learn slowly because accuracy breeds speed. You have to put the movements in 100% correct otherwise you start memorizing bad habits. What brings all the moves out of the subconscious is the muse. And that is how people play music.”

“Technique is a means of how we can take what is inside and share it with a person outside. The better our technique the better we will be able to share it. Knowledge breeds quality. You got to have passion in anything you do. Passion drives you. You got to have talent. But the main thing is discipline. Discipline and Passion go together. I practice every day without fail. I force myself to improve. There is so much to learn. I want to be an incredible musician. I am not thinking about the future. I am striving for perfection. But perfection does not exist. That is the future.”

CARLO offers private tuition from his home in Melville. He can be contacted on cmombelli@mweb.co.za

"It is impossible to be self-conscious and totally involved in the music at the same time. Consciousness of self is a barrier between the player and the instrument. As I forget my own presence, I attain a state of oneness with the activity and become absorbed in a way that defies the passage of time." – from the book ´Being at the Piano` by Mildred Chase.


SOUTH AFRICA	BRAZIL	GERMANY	SOUTH AFRICA	DOCTORATE	LEARNING