LOUIS SCLAVIS/DOMINIQUE PIFARÉLY/VINCENT COURTOIS - Asian Fields Variations
ECM 573 2668
Louis Sclavis (clarinets); Dominique Pifarély (violin); Vincent Courtois (cello)
Recorded September 2016
A first recording for this particular trio, although the musicians all share long working relationships. Sclavis and Pifarély have performed together in various contexts for 35 years, and the clarinettist and Courtoise have some two decades of musical history behind them. Sclavis' intent in bringing this particular line up together was to "make a real collective" and this has been achieved by each member contributing compositions and and their shared (and combined) musical experiences.
One of the stand out factors of Asian Fields Variations is the sheer variety of the music produced. The trio format is seemingly forever re-inventing itself as perhaps the most flexible of all small group permutations. Small enough for individual voices to be clearly heard, and not to big to sound overly busy but with enough space for all to move freely, or as Evan Parker once said "Too much Yin and Yang with a duo, and starts to sound crowded with four or more." Sclavis and his cohorts appear to take this to heart, and have through a wonderful juxtaposition of composition and improvisation created a set that is melodically satisfying, with a blending of three voices to deliver a chamber music that is full of charm yet never to coy to raise it's collective voice to a quiet roar.
What is immediately apparent in this absorbing album is the immense sense of camaraderie, and the innate lyricism inherent in the music that is presented. Sclavis' clarinets sweep accross their natural range from the high notes to the bottom of the bass clarinet's range, providing solid support for his colleagues or using his unique tone on the instruments to spin melodic lines above the strings.
Vincent Courtois' cello is a wonderful asset in this format, whether providing arco accompaniment, employing his beautifully full and expressive tone with a bow when playing the lead or counter-melody line as heard on the closing 'La Carrière', which is possibly the most beautiful track on this outstanding album, or plucking the strings to drive along, in tandem with Pifarély's ostinato motif, Sclavis' clarinet before taking his own solo that encompass the range of the the cello from guitar like lines to the double bass register of the lower strings.
Pifarély's violin is often the wayward child, unpredictable melodic scribbles popping up when least expected and dissonant phrasing, and the use of advanced techniques to produce lines simultaneously that can be staggeringly complex or single note lines that transcend traditional classical tone or notation, and it this waywardness that keeps the trio on their collective toes producing a set that is full of events and surprises.
Another successful collaboration in Louis Sclavis' discography that now seems to be full of projects that morph into new groups that take on a life of their own, and long may this continue.
Reviewed by Nick Lea
ECM 573 2668
Louis Sclavis (clarinets); Dominique Pifarély (violin); Vincent Courtois (cello)
Recorded September 2016
A first recording for this particular trio, although the musicians all share long working relationships. Sclavis and Pifarély have performed together in various contexts for 35 years, and the clarinettist and Courtoise have some two decades of musical history behind them. Sclavis' intent in bringing this particular line up together was to "make a real collective" and this has been achieved by each member contributing compositions and and their shared (and combined) musical experiences.
One of the stand out factors of Asian Fields Variations is the sheer variety of the music produced. The trio format is seemingly forever re-inventing itself as perhaps the most flexible of all small group permutations. Small enough for individual voices to be clearly heard, and not to big to sound overly busy but with enough space for all to move freely, or as Evan Parker once said "Too much Yin and Yang with a duo, and starts to sound crowded with four or more." Sclavis and his cohorts appear to take this to heart, and have through a wonderful juxtaposition of composition and improvisation created a set that is melodically satisfying, with a blending of three voices to deliver a chamber music that is full of charm yet never to coy to raise it's collective voice to a quiet roar.
What is immediately apparent in this absorbing album is the immense sense of camaraderie, and the innate lyricism inherent in the music that is presented. Sclavis' clarinets sweep accross their natural range from the high notes to the bottom of the bass clarinet's range, providing solid support for his colleagues or using his unique tone on the instruments to spin melodic lines above the strings.
Vincent Courtois' cello is a wonderful asset in this format, whether providing arco accompaniment, employing his beautifully full and expressive tone with a bow when playing the lead or counter-melody line as heard on the closing 'La Carrière', which is possibly the most beautiful track on this outstanding album, or plucking the strings to drive along, in tandem with Pifarély's ostinato motif, Sclavis' clarinet before taking his own solo that encompass the range of the the cello from guitar like lines to the double bass register of the lower strings.
Pifarély's violin is often the wayward child, unpredictable melodic scribbles popping up when least expected and dissonant phrasing, and the use of advanced techniques to produce lines simultaneously that can be staggeringly complex or single note lines that transcend traditional classical tone or notation, and it this waywardness that keeps the trio on their collective toes producing a set that is full of events and surprises.
Another successful collaboration in Louis Sclavis' discography that now seems to be full of projects that morph into new groups that take on a life of their own, and long may this continue.
Reviewed by Nick Lea
