CD - Zeitkratze
Recorded live at the Philharmonie Luxembourg in October 2009 and edited in the summer of the following year in Germany (GreenHouseStudios), these five new compositions by Alvin Lucier resonate intensely due to the quality of their structures and acoustic instrumental twists. In a semi-improvisational context the ensemble constructs sequences that are always very restrained, rigorous and sensitive, nuanced in their sound interferences, which are maniacally articulated in overtones, aural microemergencies and sensual passages. Gloomy, but often highly evocative sounds, insightful in their dilated harmonies abound in the work. Bristly effects are created which always maintain the intimacy of the climax of the performance, searching out a context that is never redundant and not "frozen" by non-essential abstractions. The nearly octogenarian American experimenter once again proves his incomparable skill, showing how conceptualism can profit from dissolution in essential performing actions, infused with a few simple, primary elements. This is acoustic research that still excites us with its clarity of inspiration, talent and discipline.
Aurelio Cianciotta