3 Phases (I) White

CD - Creative Sources – CS537, Lisbon 2018

1. White - 41'43''

Ernesto Rodrigues - Viola

Albert Cirera - Tenor Saxophone

Rodrigo Pinheiro - Piano

Carlos Santos - Field Recordings & Sine Waves

Recorded April 2018, Lisbon
Cover design Carlos Santos

https://ernestorodrigues.bandcamp.com/album/3-phases-i-white

Reviews

"3 Phases", or different aspects of the approach that violist Ernesto Rodrigues applies to improvisation, in three different groupings over three different days, all live at O'Culto da Ajuda, in Lisbon, Portugal in 2018, here in an ea-improv setting with Albert Cirera on tenor saxophone, Rodrigo Pinheiro on piano, & Carlos Santos on field recordings & sine waves. (Squidco)

Na naszą wyimaginowaną scenę powracają Albert Cirera (tym razem tylko saksofon tenorowy) i Rodrigo Pinheiro na fortepianie, a dołączają do nich przedstawiciele starszego pokolenia portugalskich improwizatorów – Ernesto Rodrigues na altówce i Carlos Santos – field recordings i elektronika … fal radiowych. Koncert z O'Culto da Ajuda, kwiecień 2018 roku. Jeden trak, prawie 42 minuty.

Suche frazy zaspanych jeszcze instrumentów, akordy z klawiszy, prychy tuby, liczenie strun w niemal zupełnej ciszy, okruchy świergoczącego field recordings, jakbyśmy odbywali właśnie spacer po wiosennej łące. Skromne preparacje, pojękiwanie naciąganych małym palcem strun, cykady tańczące za oknem – classical silent free improv from Creative Sources! Molekularna, niezwykle skupiona narracja – fale radiowe szeleszczą na wietrze, tuba saksofonu drży, podobnie jak pudło rezonansowe fortepianu. Trzy pięknie brzmiące instrumenty akustyczne i żyjące w stanie ciągłej zmiany field-recordingowe tło, jakże zmysłowa koegzystencja.


Pierwsza próba wyjścia ze strefy ciszy ma miejsce w 11 minucie, czyniona jest z inicjatywy pianisty, z akcentami klasycznego piękna brzmienia altówki. Pod koniec pierwszego kwadransa muzyka rozbrzmiewa pełnią niemal filharmoniczną (świetna akustyka pomieszczenia!), by po ułamku sekundy powrócić do tłumionego minimalizmu, zdobionego partycją fake sounds – saksofon brzmi jak perkusja, altówka jak huragan chrząszczy, klawisze fortepianu niczym rozstrojona gitara, a wokół śpiewają ptaki elektroniki. W kolejnym etapie, znów odrobina żwawszej narracji, tu za przyczyną Cirery i Pinheiro, którzy sieją nieustanny ferment. Po 27 minucie na chwilę opowieść robi się naprawdę głośna! Nawet Ernesto, zwykle chłodny w reakcjach scenicznych, tryska emocjami! Po 33 minucie każdy z muzyków dokłada coś nowego do palety dźwiękowej - kreacja muzyków buzuje, a nasze uszy tańczą z radości. Preparacje, stylizacje, emanacje – nie ma chwili nudy w tym strumieniu dźwiękowym! Pod koniec nagrania, na moment, elektronika przejmuje władanie sceną, śląc posuwiste pulsary energii. Po 40 minucie wszyscy jednak, z należytą pieczołowitością, przystępują do gaszenia płomienia opowieści. Czynią to po mistrzowsku, aż do ostatniego dźwięku. Andrzej Nowak (Trybuna Muzyki Spontanicznej)

"Three Phases (I) WHITE" contain live material, recorded by Miguel Azguime in April 2018 at O'Culto da Ajuda, only a couple of months later. This time the set includes one track that lasts 42 minutes, and the album deserves not only four, but five starts: it is simply outstanding. Albert is phenomenal: he shows all his qualities and techniques of alternative sounds and effects, keeping an unbelievable emotional and expressive content in his playing. Carlos Santos provides discrete electronics, sine wave and field recordings (cicadas!). Rodrigo and Ernesto add to this electro-acoustic symbiosis infinite dimensions and infinite sound space. Everything is abstract, yet delicate, subtle and tender. Also, melancholic in some sense... Beautiful album, one of my favorite achievements of Albert with Ernesto and the Lisbon's gang! Comparable in beauty with the best of Evan Parker Electro-Acoustic Ensemble! Maciej Lewenstein

3 Phasis (II) Grey

CD - Creative Sources – CS538, Lisbon 2018

1. Grey - 36'18''

Ernesto Rodrigues - Viola

Bruno Parrinha - Soprano Saxophone

Nuno Torres - Alto Saxophone

Paulo Galão - Tenor Saxophone

Recorded April 2018, Lisbon
Cover design Carlos Santos

https://ernestorodrigues.bandcamp.com/album/3-phases-ii-grey

Reviews

"3 Phases", or different aspects of the approach that violist Ernesto Rodrigues applies to improvisation, in three different groupings over three different days, all live at O'Culto da Ajuda, in Lisbon, Portugal in 2018, here in an acoustic sax trio with strings, with Bruno Parrinha on soprano, Nuno Torres on alto, Paulo Galao on tenor sax. (Squidco)

The series of three-color albums was recorded with different personnel in April 2018 at O'Culto de Ayuda. "WHITE" is reported in Albert Cirera with others entry. They represent, as Squidco reviewer stressed, "different aspects of the approach that violist Ernesto Rodrigues applies to improvisation, in three different groupings over three different days, all live in Lisbon. "WHITE" is reported in Albert Cirera's entry.


"GREY" is very different: viola is accompanied here by the three wind instruments, three saxophones. The only track of the album lasts over 36 minutes and is truly fascinating. It starts quietly with "fake" and alternative sounds, followed by long tones played by the viola and the winds, creating a kind of free improvised minimal music. Indeed, these repetitive sounds continue, reminding me of Terry Riley's "In C" or even more "A Rainbow in the Curved Air". But, associaitons are of secondary importance: it is simply very beautiful, free improvised music, with plenty of "melodic" motifs and themes. In the middle of the track, a more abstract part begins, with effects created by mouthpieces etc. Here, there is plenty of allusions to the contemporary chamber music, not necessarily minimal one. In contrast, after another quiet fragment come sthe final part, rooted in... ancient music. Fantastic stuff!!! Maciej Lewenstein

A late evening in the future

CD - Creative Sources – CS601, Lisbon 2019

1. A late evening in the future - 04'28''
2. Being - or remaining? - 27'58''
3. The earth might be uninhabited - 09'05''
4. The tape runs on in silence - 04'16''

Ernesto Rodrigues - Viola & Zither

Miriam den Boer Sálmon - Violin

Fredrik Rasten - Acoustic Guitar

Guilherme Rodrigues - Cello & Percussion

Recorded October 2018, Berlin
Cover design Carlos Santos

https://ernestorodrigues.bandcamp.com/album/a-late-evening-in-the-future

Reviews

Rounding out this rather oblique survey of recent (& otherwise) Rodrigues releases, let me also mention A late evening in the future more specifically: It was recorded by a quartet in Berlin (with Rodrigues himself also on zither) in October 2018, and likewise (per Sitsa) projects an affective calming, there focusing more on central figures (rather than counterpoint or generalized spanning): The feel of A late evening in the future thus recalls the similarly string-based Dethick (as discussed here last month) rather closely for me, whereas its sparse focus can recall Golden towers and electric frictions (among many Rodrigues albums) per above. Finally, as also mentioned in a summary last month, larger productions from CreativeFest #12 are appearing, most recently a new String Theory album (of eighteen musicians), Krypton(as another rather singular, surging wave), as well as a new Suspensão nonet, Rayon Blanc — again reaffirming a focus on quiet (& the tension within or between notes, in an ongoing interrogation of musical continuity per above) & even fragility (perhaps akin to that of the latest IKB, there via biological figuration). So although Rodrigues has been producing albums with more presence lately — & a variety of weaponry largely (or at least sometimes) depends upon audibility — he's also reasserting an emphasis on ambivalent articulation, quietness & restraint — i.e. affirming the fragility of so many relations in our world. (And I expect to be discussing some other smaller, perhaps more intimate, releases soon.) Todd McComb's Jazz Thoughts

A subtle album of acoustic interaction recorded at Berlin's Noiseberg from the quartet of Miriam den Boer Salmon on violin, Ernesto Rodrigues on viola & zither, Fredrik Rasten on acoustic guitar, and Guilherme Rodrigues on cello & percussion, sounding almost electronic in their frictional technique and harmonic overtones, ebbing and flowing from active interaction to tranquil discourse. Squidco

A quartet of strings with occasional percussion supplying mostly quiet, sound-based (as opposed to melodic or rhythmic based) improvisations. As is the usual case with releases on Creative Sources, the beautiful recordings bring out the detailed nuances and frequent harmonic ghosts. The brief title track lets us know what we're in for, as massed bowing congeals into a thick block of hiss and sing, growing slightly louder and heavier over its 4 and a half minute running time, with faint beating skirting the edges; succinct. "Being — Or Remaining" features a more pointillistic approach at first, plucks and knocks and very quiet string bounce with high-pitched chords and sporadic strums. Ebbing into near silence and what could possibly be chair creaks, before starting off again with drum-head patter and pizzicato strings building to near full-throated all-in; a bell sounds.


I can imagine that many people nowadays engage in this sort of collective improvising as a thing in itself to do. A way to pass time pleasurably in the company of friends. The playing here is however of a very high caliber, engaged in by folks with heightened listening abilities. The flow of the pieces makes perfect sense, and rewards close attention. Jeph Jerman (The Squid's Ear)

"A Late Evening in the Future" was recorded in October 2018 at Noiseberg studio in Berlin. This time  Ernesto and Guilherme are joined by the old collaborator, Fredrik Rasten on acoustic guitar and Mirian den Boer Sálmon. The quartet plays four songs, combining the sound of bowed string instruments with the acoustic guitar. Ernesto additionally plays zither, while Guilherme -- percussion. "Being - Or Remaining?",  lasting over 28 minutes, is the highlight, combining as expected free minimal music, with improvise contemporary chamber music. I like also "The Earth Might Be Uninhabited", a piece with an Oriental touch. Maciej Lewenstein

Sitsa

CD - Creative Sources – CS564, Lisbon 2019

1. Bending Spoons - 07'54''
2. Ho Tachik - 07'59''
3. Zomozorrulo - 10'00''
4. Eis se não quando - 17'37''

Ernesto Rodrigues - Piano Harp & Viola 

Abdul Moimême - Prepared Electric Guitar

Oier Iruretagoiena - Electric Organ

Lorea Oar-Arteta - Paper & Contact Mics

Miguel A. Garcia - Electronics

Carlos Santos - Electronics

Recorded March 2018, Bilbao
Cover design Carlos Santos

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

Reviews

Continuing the recent theme here of improvising ensembles featuring electronics alongside traditional instruments, Sitsa actually seems to be something of a followup to last year's Coluro — with Ernesto Rodrigues joining a regional Iberian collective to form a sextet with two members on electronics, and a general tendency toward transformative timbral exploration. Sitsa was recorded in March 2018 in Bilbao (only two months after Coluro was recorded on two dates in Madrid), and features Miguel A. García (b.1980) paired with Creative Sources regular Carlos Santos on electronics: García has already appeared on Creative Sources, as well as elsewhere, including in a solo setting, but also e.g. on Golden towers and electric frictions (recorded in March 2016), featuring the two Rodrigueses in a quintet with Abdul Moimême, who also appears on Sitsa (on which he's credited with both guitar & metals): The former can seem almost like a study for the latter, involving a sparser setting with more of a central focus of activity, rather than a general tapestry spanning auditory space more polyphonically.... (This notion of "focus" will recur.) In contrast, Coluro might be heard as investigating somewhat different concerns, with a sort of lightness emerging from balancing both timbral colors & pitch ranges across the ensemble spectrum, an investigation of a sort of coordinate spanning space as previously noted.... The sextet on Sitsa is filled out by (previously unknown to me) Oier Iruretagoiena (electric organ) & Lorea Oar-Arteta (paper & contact mics), however, giving it more continuity & center, but with pitches (often simultaneously) across the gamut: After an initial signal clank or clunk, it thus moves into a deep roar, hiding, scuttling, broadly shifting & escaping resonances (both high & low) sometimes turning to searing intensity around a generalized atmosphere of vibration. (Sitsa definitely benefits from better speakers in a real stereo setup.) Its layers of activity might also be compared to Stratus (recorded a few months later), which is a "more acoustic" ensemble (meaning that the electronics, also from Santos, tend to remain more in the background focusing on audibility), and projects a sort of sparse open air delicacy (of color, etc.), in contrast to the "indoor" industriousness of Sitsa. Returning to the beginning of the recent trilogy (of discussions here) with Monopiece + Jaap Blonk, then, one might indeed observe a more "static" (or ready-made) pop vibe there in the way that timbres jump out from a largely nonexistent background, whereas Sitsa transforms sounds into other sounds as grounded in a deep rumble: It's thus rather more assertive than many albums from Rodrigues (& indeed García, etc.), emphasizing continuity within its own (more mysterious, even elemental) DIY vibe: It might thus be compared to Skiagraphía (discussed here April 2017), with its own dual electronics setup producing a sort of broad wave or crescendo across various twittering timbral details, or even to the more recent guitar trio album Magma (also with Moimême, in a followup to Basalto, in what had been a starker recording of the same trio released in 2016...), the latter involving a sort of rock-based assertiveness transformed into another forceful timbral wave.... As noted, though, Sitsa is generally more polyphonic, including articulating counterpoint across a variety of extremes — & involving more presence than many Rodrigues albums — via various clanks & rumbles, boings, creaks, quasi-sirens, etc. This variety is then rendered basically continuous — except for prominent track breaks — via the interiorized quasi-industrial relation of a dull roar. (One might thus suggest that Sitsa interrogates continuity: Such exploration extends into concepts such as individual notes, which tend to appear only as moments of transformation. One is instead presented with a more generalized sense of evolving sensation.) Transgressing discrete impositions of individual notes marks Sitsa as having a very contemporary orientation, and indeed not only does one find a post-serial or post-concrète exploration, but the original core of "lowercase" (now rendered in this space as a kind of generalized mixing emphasizing sonic details) appearing explicitly in the paper & microphone combo. And in keeping with an exploration of continuity, one would be hard-pressed to pick out the specific sound of that paper.... In all of this, technical descriptions of Sitsa tend to miss its transformative & especially affective quality, though: It achieves a powerful, if paradoxical, effect of concentration & calming — with the industrial affect of contradictory physical space somehow rendering disorientation into flowing presence. (The album title, if one believes online translation, is apparently in the African Bantu Chichewa language, meaning to reduce or unload, and unloading tension does seem to be the affective focus of the album. Track titles are then in other languages, some — including Chichewa? — seemingly unconnected to the musicians....) There is consequently both a sense of austerity & a lot happening at any particular moment. (One might then compare to the sophisticated, symphonic summation of Music for Baritone Saxophone, Bass Clarinets & Electronics, particularly for its rather different approach to "making audible" via electronics, a tapestry contrasting & highlighting detailed timbres, projecting its own sort of "organ" feel....) And so I've found Sitsa to be consistently potent & transformative, particularly in its ongoing & extensive combinations of highs & lows. Todd McComb's Jazz Thoughts

Joing Portuguese and Spanish improvisers for four recordings in Bilbao, Spain, this sextet presents sound works using unusual orchestration--piano harp, viola, guitar, metals, electric organ, paper, contact mics, and electronics--balancing spacious exploration with assertive moments of percussive and caustic sound, evolving bold sonic and timbral combinations. Squidco