(Free Improvisation) Chris Burn, Philip Thomas, Simon H.Fell - The Middle Distance - 2009, FLAC (tracks), lossless

"The Middle Distance draws on a bountiful reservoir of experimental histories. Thomas is known for his performances of Cage and 'complexity' composers like Michael Finnissy; in 1993 Burn issued a disc of piano music by pioneering American composer Henry Cowell, although his interest in composed means has been overshadowed by his reputation as an improvisor. Thomas, playing prepared piano, remains sonically distinct from Burn, but the music manages a noticeably unified soundworld. Fell leaves conventional bass rhetoric far behind as the musicians consciously match up their timbres; at 2'55" on track four, their extended techniques flow into a microtonal patois that trashes instrumental allegiance." Philip Clark THE WIRE
"From the start of the first track Looking Ahead, Seeing Nothing (an allusion to the uncertainty of improv?) the music is put together like some kind of finely crafted filigree sculpture, tense, full of anticipation and edgy precipices hanging over moments of silence. The interplay between the musicians is outstanding, there are three exceptional set of ears here, and the many years experience they share in the music is clear right from the outset. There is a chamber music feel to the recording, which is wonderfully captured in the resonant space that is the St Paul's building at Huddersfield University. Everything is played entirely acoustically, and so we have the sound of a lot of strings here, struck, rubbed, bowed and hammered, combining wonderfully to create little sections of finely balanced sounds, some short some long, some tonal some percussive. It all just works so well. The second piece, a gradual, episodic thirteen minute study called Not With The Fire In Me Now sounds almost composed, and given that all three musicians have worked with compositional structures quite often in the past maybe this isn't such a crazy idea, but whether there is any preordained structure to the music or not it is clear that improvisation is at the heart of every one of the pieces here. I love to hear piano played in improvised music like this, and Fell is such an able and versatile bassist that he finds a multitude of ways to wrap around the mix of scrapes and chimes from the pianists. The sense of shape and balance in the music is what really makes it for me. Nothing is overdone, bold statements are made when they are needed and there isn't a fight to be heard. the musicians are working here to form a music together. This is just a great recording. A wonderful fifty plus minutes of finely crafted improvisation. The opening passage of the final Looking Back, Remembering Little is just great, a thunderous blend of pummeling deep piano booms matched by a heavy metal approach to bowed bass, in places almost reminding me of a more abstract Hendrix workout. Just as the opening is so powerfully direct, so the sections that follow are elegantly gentle, so underlining the varied nature of the music. I thoroughly recommend this album to anyone that enjoys improvised music of any kind. My favourite improv disc of the year so far." Richard Pinnell THE WATCHFUL EAR

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Путь: ...\2009-The Middle Distance [Another Timbre AT24]
1 -=- 01-Looking ahead, seeing nothing.flac -=- CDDA (100%)
2 -=- 02-Not with the fire in me now.flac -=- CDDA (100%)
3 -=- 03-All moved.flac -=- CDDA (100%)
4 -=- 04-Never knew such silence.flac -=- CDDA (100%)
5 -=- 05-Looking back, remembering little.flac -=- CDDA (100%)
Сводка 100,00% CDDA
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