Tempted To Smile doesn't really surprise us when whe know the implication of these three wise-wizards, wonderfull surveyors of the incredible and the shared moment. The music spings up, there, alive, vibrating, ready to accept its most beautiful (and risky) transports.
TRANSATLANTIC VISIONS is the live recording of the Vision Festival XIII concert (New-York, June 2008), which has been awarded "Best Performance of the Year" by the monthly magazine All About Jazz NY.
Recorded live on June 2008 at Vision Festival XIII (New-York) by Stefen Heger
Mixing and mastering: Jean-Marc Foussat
Liner notes: Alexandre Pierrepont
Photographs: Thierry Trombert, X
Produceur: Michel Dorbon
New-musicians have taught us the valuable lesson that good music can be made with any sound, even those that were never meant to be made on a musical instrument. It might be argued that new genres of music are born when musicians take an object and make it produce new-musical sounds; witness hiphop and the advent of turntablism, or the multiphonic saxo phone playing of the ’60s American jaz avant-garde. Joëlle Léandre and Danielle Roger show that this tradition of innovation is alive and well, and Tricotage documents their recent effort Fans of Léandre won’t be disappointed Recordings like Tricotage show why she is and will continue to be one of the most outstanding contrabass players in any style of music. She consistently displays a well-developed personal vocabulary on the contrabass and puts it to good use.
The album is rather short, at fortyone minutes of free improvisation between Léandre and Roger. Léandre-ites will immediately recognize her style pizzicato, voice-like attacks mixed with often gritty arco work. Roger takes a complementary approach—she chooses to avoid loud, disruptive events like rim-shots and squeaking snare drumheads, and instead uses small bells, a lot of brush work, very occasional cymbals, and a constant trickle of mezzo-piano chatter on the middle drums. This approach is successful because it allows Roger to evoke rich textures without overwhelming the acoustic contrabass.
The flrst seconds of the recording will give the listener a teste of what is to come. Roger uses brushes to create tension by playing a sort of drum roll for a few moments, and then the release comes when Léandre enters with her sig nature chattering bass. The highlight for me is track three, Come on on on on, where it all comes together in a delicate five-minute conversation between snare drum and bass.
Each track features a different side of Léandre and Roger’s playing. Track four might be called "squeaky and plucky" and track five "nice classical bowing. " The sixth track seems dedicated to the evocation of anxiety and its release, and the seventh to a jarring rhythmic theme. The CD ends with a brief vocalese discourse by Léandre, framed by Roger drumming.
This CD contains some good moments, and I think that any fan of this music would be happy to own a copy. Among works by Léandre, I would definitely rate it as one of the better recordings because of the role that texture plays. Roger’s restraint allows for a great deal of artistry and joy to come out. The best thing for me was to discover Danielle Roger. Not being familiar with the creative music scene in Canada, I have never heard Roger play and after hearing Tricotage, I hope to hear more of her.
In stark contrast, Tricotage is stylistically settled and explores in detail a single area of the improvising spectrum. A consummate piece of improvisation, Léandre and percussionist Roger show a level of awareness of each other that is enviable, interacting as they do in almost effortless dialogue. Each of the nine splendidly crafted pieces has a distinct identity but is connected by a unity of purpose and approach. The music is delicate, sometimes brittle but never flimsy, contrasting a range of restrained almost understated sounds with more positive gestures. Léandre’s arco playing can often be poignant, even heart-rending but she is equally capable of producing a smile on her listener’s face with playful and even throwaway gestures.
Léandre is very much at home in the duet setting having used this format on several recent recordings with different partners and instrumentation. On, she and drummer Roger speak in very personal tones that bring out the esthetic beauty of their two instruments. Léandre initiates the action with a vigorous display of arco playing, to which Roger simultaneously responds with a deft, sensitive drum touch. Roger uses bells cymbals, and other percussion devices to establish a serene mood. This state is temporary for she becomes more aggressive in response to the physicality displayed by Léandre. The bassist moves gracefully from bowing to plucking and back again, projecting hugely rich tones containing muscular strength and power. In step, Roger shrouds the output with quickly emerging splats of brush and stick work to set a galloping pace for the two women.
The program consists of nine exercises in bass/ drum intercommunication. Either artist is likely to set the direction. On Jeux de mains, Roger uses her hands and palms to rub abrasive textures into the song, which causes Léandre to become somewhat percussive herself as she aggressively taps the strings The rhythm patterns are not completely atonal. An occasional tangible beat will suddenly emerge and then flee as quickly as it appeared. On au clair de lune, Léandre plays a mournful strain while Roger is in complete contrast with spontaneous and rapid spitfires of sound. Throughout, the music is cloaked in density and weightiness. The foreboding overtones give way to hopefulness and then recede back in an undercurrent of darkness. Léandre vocally injects the spirit of the Native American on Coupes blanches, and the ethnic beat of Roger matches. These duets represent two very talented artists. painting a formidable picture of intense audibility. There is no need for any other instrument on this set. Léandre and Roger say it all.
Première rencontre? Rien ne nous l’indique, si ce n’est cette force des premières fois, tellement perceptible ici. À Joëlle la terre, l’enracinement, le terreau constructif. À Danielle la fausse fragilité, la légèreté céleste. L’une navigue entre jazz affranchi, improvisation radicale et musique contemporaine. L’autre surfe entre rock d’avant-garde, musique improvisée et conte musicale. L’une est autodidacte, l’autre pas. L’une voyage beaucoup, l’autre moins. Mais de cela, l’auditeur n’a cure et il a raison. Pas de spectaculaire ici mais de la présence avant tout. L’archet rapide, les balais tournoient, Joëlle cite un clair de lune, un chant tribal indien surgit, l’imprévue s’invite, ce vieil inattendue est encore au rendez-vous. C’est l’histoire des rencontres, des combats menés contre vents et marées. C’est l’histoire des décalages horaires, des fatigues et des courbatures. C’est l’histoire d’une musique (et de ces musiciens) qu’aucun marchand ne pourra jamais pervertir. C’est la rencontre de deux musiciennes qui jouent et tissent ensemble. Nous en sommes ici les témoins privilégiés.
Tricoter: 1. remuer vivement les jambes pour courir, pédaler… 2. battre… 3. une maille à l’endroit, une maille à l’envers… il y a un peu de tout cela: en guise de guibolles ou d’aiguilles, une contrebasse et des percussions.
Tricoteuses: 1. personnes qui tricotent. 2. surnom donné pendant la révolution française aux femmes qui assistaient aux séances de la Convention et/ou de la machine à Guillotin. On se rappelle les fameuses tricoteuses que furent, il y a une quinzaine d’années, Lindsay Cooper, Maggie Nicols et, déjà, Joëlle Léandre (cf. Live at the Bastille). Revendication politique liée au FIG (Feminist Improvising Group)?
Y a-t-il ici une quelconque revendication? Sinon celle de deux musiciennes de se retrouver et de nous communiquer quelques instants tissés avec force et délicatesse dans une laine brute?
Enregistré à Montréal, cette knitting factory de poche subit aussi l’influence locale, en nous invitant à une sorte de rituel indien, invocation aux forces naturelles (coupes blanches).
