THE BALDERIN SALI VARIATIONS - Boreal Delights At the Soundscape & Soundportraits Festival - 2018
Leo Records CD LR 870/871
Matthias Bauer/ double bass (Berlin); Lena Czerniawska/ Live Drawing (Poland); Emilio Gordoa/ vibraphone (Mexico / Berlin); Teppo Hauta-Aho/ double bass (Finland); Veli Kujala/ microtone accordion (Finland); Paul Lovens/ drums & selected cymbals (Germany); Libero Mureddu/ piano (Finland); Dag Magnus Narvesen/ drums (Norway / Berlin); Evan Parker/ saxophones (UK); Harri Sjöström/ soprano & sopranino saxophone (FI / Berlin); Sebastiano Tramontana/ trombone (IT); Phil Wachsmann/ violin & live electronics (UK)
Recorded live at the Balderin Sali, Helsinki, Finland, 8th and 9th September 2018
The occasion of this recording was the SOUNDSCAPES + SOUNDPORTRAITS FESTIVAL, Helsinki, Finland, 2018. Soprano saxophonist Harri Sjöström conceived of the notion of a festival to attract international, avant-garde artists and audiences: that was back in 2013. It’s a broad and a bold adventure, focusing on present-time composition and illustration along with free improvisation. Polish artist Lena Czerniawska produced the live, spontaneous visual art along with the musical performances and projected onto a screen.
Invited, guest musicians from all over Europe played their parts in a wonderful fête célèbre: Phil Wachsmann and Evan Parker, for example, truly excelling themselves in their duets together. Wachsmann even uses his bow, drawing down on his classical background in counterpoint to Parker’s abstractions. The latter reconnoitres the whole gamut of multiphonics, the auditory colours available to his tenor, and the duo together enjoin each other to jostling, tumultuous concatenations throughout which, it seems, they never lose sight of their synchronization.
Pairings of musicians are shown in the sleeve notes, while all musicians are present on the first track of CD1 and the last track of CD2.
Reviewed by Ken Cheetham
Leo Records CD LR 870/871
Matthias Bauer/ double bass (Berlin); Lena Czerniawska/ Live Drawing (Poland); Emilio Gordoa/ vibraphone (Mexico / Berlin); Teppo Hauta-Aho/ double bass (Finland); Veli Kujala/ microtone accordion (Finland); Paul Lovens/ drums & selected cymbals (Germany); Libero Mureddu/ piano (Finland); Dag Magnus Narvesen/ drums (Norway / Berlin); Evan Parker/ saxophones (UK); Harri Sjöström/ soprano & sopranino saxophone (FI / Berlin); Sebastiano Tramontana/ trombone (IT); Phil Wachsmann/ violin & live electronics (UK)
Recorded live at the Balderin Sali, Helsinki, Finland, 8th and 9th September 2018
The occasion of this recording was the SOUNDSCAPES + SOUNDPORTRAITS FESTIVAL, Helsinki, Finland, 2018. Soprano saxophonist Harri Sjöström conceived of the notion of a festival to attract international, avant-garde artists and audiences: that was back in 2013. It’s a broad and a bold adventure, focusing on present-time composition and illustration along with free improvisation. Polish artist Lena Czerniawska produced the live, spontaneous visual art along with the musical performances and projected onto a screen.
Invited, guest musicians from all over Europe played their parts in a wonderful fête célèbre: Phil Wachsmann and Evan Parker, for example, truly excelling themselves in their duets together. Wachsmann even uses his bow, drawing down on his classical background in counterpoint to Parker’s abstractions. The latter reconnoitres the whole gamut of multiphonics, the auditory colours available to his tenor, and the duo together enjoin each other to jostling, tumultuous concatenations throughout which, it seems, they never lose sight of their synchronization.
Pairings of musicians are shown in the sleeve notes, while all musicians are present on the first track of CD1 and the last track of CD2.
Reviewed by Ken Cheetham
