Merz

CD – Creative Sources Recordings – CS596, Lisbon 2019

1. I - 30'23''

LISBON STRING TRIO & GIL GONÇALVES

Ernesto Rodrigues - Viola

Miguel Mira - Cello

Alvaro Rosso - Double Bass
Gil Gonçalves - Tuba

Recorded November 2018, Lisbon
Cover design Carlos Santos

Collage by Dilar Pereira

https://ernestorodrigues.bandcamp.com/album/merz

Reviews

The Lisbon String Trio of Ernesto Rodrigues on viola, Miguel Mira on cello, and Alvaro Rosso on contrabass continue their recent string of collaborations with a fourth player, Portuguese tuba player Gil Goncalves joining to addd a unique complement to their strings, as Goncalves adds bass, blats, growls and unique timbres of upper register low brass. Squidco

"Turning to some other recent (or upcoming) Creative Sources releases involving Ernesto Rodrigues himself, I first want to mention Merz - recorded in Lisbon last November, also as part of CreativeFest #12 - with tubist Gil Gonçalves joining the Lisbon String Trio for its tenth album (or perhaps eleventh, counting Rhetorica with pianist Rodrigo Pinheiro, which has yet to appear). Gonçalves (b.1983) has already joined Rodrigues in e.g. IKB & VGO ensembles, but hadn't been noted here yet.... Having a tuba join the Lisbon String Trio also recalls the trombone iterations, Intonarumori (discussed here in August 2017, as part of the original series of six albums) & Tactile (discussed last July, and what I've called the "most diffuse" in the series), as well as the trumpet concertante-style album From Faust with Sei Miguel (also discussed here in July 2018).


Of course, the latter involves a higher register, as most of the early Lisbon String Trio albums did, and so a more brilliant sound from the horn. However, presumably in part via mic'ing & mixing, Merz features the tuba quite prominently too, likewise lending a sort of concertante feel, in this case unusually so considering the instruments involved. The sometimes pointillistic strings are generally more active than the more restricted, often growling, legato tuba, but a fine balance is achieved in overall ensemble articulation & audibility nonetheless.... Indeed, such string & brass combos continue to appeal, and warrant further exploration - here in a more assertive mode that does sometimes recall e.g. Polyorchard (e.g. Sextet | Quintet as, once again, discussed here last July). Merz moreover seems to encompass both study & exhibition, making for a rather energetic & directly appealing "tuba album." It thus seems to be an album that could have wider appeal than any of the other (at least new) items mentioned in this entry (& with the possible, upcoming exception of Rhetorica, which I have yet to hear...)." Todd McComb, Jazz Thoughts

"Merz" was recorded by the Lisbon String Trio with the phenomenal tuba player, Gil Gonçalves, at O'Culto da Ajuda in Lisbon during the CreativeFest\#12. An album, obviously, is dedicated to the memory of Kurt Schwitters. 

Schwitters worked in several genres and media, including dadaism, constructivism, surrealism, poetry, sound, painting, sculpture, graphic design, typography, and what came to be known as installation art. He is most famous for his collages, is called Merz Pictures, where Merz is `practically a synonym of dada. 

Obviously, the main atraction of "Merz" is the symbiosis and synergy of the Lisbon String Trio with Gil Gonçalves. In the first half, Gil plays long peaceful tones, but then he becomes more expressive, playing faster, more fragmented passages. At some moment he starts to provide the main rhythmic texture of the track.It is also worth pointing out that the ART  of tuba playing of Gil Gonçalvez is totally different from that of my other favorite tuba players: Zdzis\l aw Piernik and Per-\AA ke Holmlander. Great set by LST and Gil Gonçalves! Maciej Lewenstein