Nie by Ernesto Rodrigues, Christine Abdelnour & Axel Dörner

Recorded on November 1st 2008, at Tcha Tcha Tcha Studio, Lisbon, Portugal.
Recorded by Diogo Tavares.
Mixed and mastered by Axel Dörner.
Graphic design by Carlos Santos.
Production by Ernesto Rodrigues.

One of the most abiding memories from my childhood is of a drawer at my grandmother's house full of a mass of tangled bits of cotton thread, wool and string that she kept for some reason, like grandmothers do. I didn't visit her often, but when I did I would be fascinated by the tangle of different colours, textures and thickness and would enjoy picking out the end of one thread, pulling it gently to see how far it would unravel before it took a hold in the enmeshed bundle. Some threads would jump out at me, brightly coloured, just asking to be tugged at, others would seem to be there just to hold the bolder colours in place. I always wondered how all of these pieces of thread came to be like this. This entwined mass seemed to be their natural state, but I wanted to separate it all out, understand howit all locked together. Today I have similar thoughts about improvised music, of which this CD is a fine example. Listening at a slight remove, the music is a mass of meshed colours and textures, some bright and bold, some aggressive, out to grab our attention, and others seemingly there just to hold it all together, to stop the fragile structure from falling apart. In good improvised music every sound has a purpose, nothing is thrown away, and within the music on this album each sound is where it is because a skilled musician placed it there. However the music cannot be without an element of chance. A brightly coloured thread placed by one musician cannot know that it will not suddenly meet a deep, thick black twine laid down by another or a mass of thin sinews from a third. The sounds on this beautiful album wrap together in the moment. As no architect could plan the course of each thread in a bundle of wool, no composer could notate music this alive. The only question remaining for the listener is whether to view the music as a whole or try and tug at the individual threads to see how much unravels. Richard Pinnell

REVIEWS

Mais um tomo da continuada colaboração de Axel Dorner com Ernesto Rodrigues, "Nie" tem ainda a intervenção da saxofonista alto de origem libanesa Christine Abdelnour. O instrumentário é acústico, mas a sua utilização mimetiza, por vezes, a música electrónica, o que é especialmente evidente na segunda faixa, "Of". Como é de regra na improvisação de cunho colectivo, torna-se difícil distinguir quem faz que sons, apesar das diferenças tímbricas entre um trompete, uma viola e um sax. Ainda assim, a nossa atenção tende a concentrar-se no seguimento das contribuições de Abdelnour, tão essenciais e oportunas estas são para a geral construção desta música feita de pequeníssimos detalhes, cujos desenvolvimentos surgem das nuances dos materiais e do xadrez das dinâmicas. Tudo isto, diga-se, com o envolvimento de ambiências, e até estados de espírito, de grande efeito, o que não é propriamente comum na escola reducionista. Rui Eduardo Paes

While Lisbon children were walking around the city, knocking doors to repeat "Pao-por-Deus" (Bread-by-God), asking for chocolates, fruits, candies, food or money on the occasion of a celebration, which could look like Halloween, even if it was born to remember the devastating earthquake, the worst one to hit Lisbon in 1755, on 1st November 2008, a group of improvisers made up of Creative Sources' label manager Ernesto Rodrigues, the talented and somewhat bizarre German trumpet player Axel Doerner and French/Lebanese saxophonist Christine Abdelnour joined together at Tcha3 Studio to record this odd session. In the liner notes, Richard Pinnell says this record confirms his idea of actual improvised music, which recalls to his mind a drawer at his grandmother's house, full of tangled cotton and wool threads, and his children's game in pulling them in order to see how far each thread would unravel before taking "a hold in the enmeshed bundle". Pinnell's nice comparison with his childish memories keeps on focusing on the most relevant aspect of this release, id est the lack of structure, but even if there is no architecture and all canonical aspects of composition appear upside down, behind the interesting experiments on breathe insufflation, string smacking and tonal modulation, some listeners will notice a certain structure from the impression one of the three elements sounds like propping the intimate brittle skeleton of each moment, so that it seems that the intriguing techniques this trio exhibit represent a non-building made up of a pile of sounds, which seems constantly toppling as well as impossible to notate. Vito Camarretta (Chain DLK)

A studio recording made in Lisbon in 2008. Three rather stark, noise-based, arid free improvisations. A convincing performance, especially for alto sax player Christine Abdelnour, but after listening to Fabula yesterday (a 2011 recording featuring Rodrigues, Dörner, and two other improvisers), Nie comes off as less inspired. François Couture (Monsieur Délire)

Musik zu rezensieren, ist eine verrückte Idee. Das wusste schon Frank Zappa. Und das weiß jeder, der schon einmal versucht hat, ohne Fanbrille zubegründen, warum ein Album funktioniert oder eben nicht. Richtig kniffligwird es dann, wenn es sich dabei um improvisierte Musik handelt. Gibt esnichts über die immanenten Qualitäten eines Popalbums zu sagen, flüchtetman sich eben in das eh viel wichtigere Drumherum. Das Milieu, dieSubkultur, das Outfit, die Attitüde. Im Fall Neuer Musik helfen diemusiktheoretischen und philosophischen Abhandlungen der Komponisten –und im äußersten Notfall ein Adorno-Zitat. Aber wie soll man fundiert überfrei improvisierte Musik schreiben, wenn diese nur als Tonträger vorliegt?Wenn all das unsichtbar bleibt, was auf den Entstehungsprozess eingewirkthat? Die Größe des Publikums und dessen Reaktion. Die Akustik undAtmosphäre des Aufführungsortes. Die Laune der Musiker. Wie soll mandiese Musik verstehen, ohne die Bewegungen, ohne die Mimik der Musikermitzuerleben? Eine Möglichkeit besteht darin, eben nicht offensiv verstehenzu wollen, sondern sich in einem ersten Schritt auf seine Empfindungen zuverlassen. In weiterer Folge informieren diese dann den Intellekt – und nichtumgekehrt. Dieser Meinung war zumindest Cecil Taylor. Warum diesesEingeständnis der Ohnmacht? Weil mit „nie“ und „fabula“ zwei Albenimprovisierter Musik vorliegen, die im Grunde gleich klingen, jedoch nureines davon zu überzeugen weiß. Wieso? Ich weiß es nicht. Und doch fühleich, dass es so ist.Auf beiden Alben bewegen sich Ernesto Rodrigues und seine Mitstreiter imDunstkreis der lowercase-Musik, klingen aber etwas erdiger unddynamischer als der Genredurchschnitt. Ganz genau hinhören muss mantrotzdem, um die vielen winzigen Details dieser leisen Musik zu entdecken,deren Klangwolken sich abwechselnd verdichten und auflösen. Würde manes sich nun auf einem bewaldeten Hügel gemütlich machen, im Gepäck einenCD-Player sowie „nie“ und „fabula“, könnte man folgendes beobachten:Zwischen all dem Vogelgezwitscher und Summen der Bienen würde erstereswie ein akademisches, gelangweiltes Experiment, wie ein Fremdkörperklingen. „fabula“ hingegen wäre zunächst einmal Teil dieser Sommeridylle.Nach zwei Minuten exotischem Gezirpe würden Klangwolken die Sonneverdecken, der Hörer würde die Augen schließen und 45 Minuten lang ineine düster verzerrte Parallelwelt eintauchen, die der unseren erschreckendähnlich sieht. Dort scheint nur noch der Mond. Dort entweicht Dampf ausriesigen Kesseln. Dort stürzt ein Propellerflugzeug in den Abgrund –scheinbar endlos und vergessen. Die Vögel sind verschwunden, aus denWäldern dringt das Heulen eines Tieres oder Menschen oder Roboters.Gerade laut genug, um gehört zu werden und gerade deshalb so faszinierendund ergreifend. Auf „nie“ sucht man diese atmosphärische Dichte, dieseSpannung der leisen Töne vergebens. Vielleicht liegt das daran, dass „fabula“ein Live-Album ist und „nie“ nicht. Vielleicht fehlen Guerreiros Computer-Sounds und Moimêmes präparierte E-Gitarre. Vielleicht fehlt aber einfachnur jene Magie, die manchen Momenten und Begegnungen innewohnt undnicht weiter begründet werden kann. eder (freiStil)

Je ne suis pas un inconditionnel d'AD, mais placé entre de bonnes mains, sa musique peut vraiment se révéler ahurissante et digne de l'engouement qu'il suscite. Le placer par exemple entre les altistes Ernesto Rodrigues (violon) et Christine Abdelnour (saxophone) lui permet de produire une musique extrêmement puissante et créative.
Un trio exceptionnellement virtuose et un des meilleurs disques du label CS depuis longtemps. La rencontre est rêvée entre une exploratrice sonore intransigeante et deux musiciens très à l'aise dans le minimalisme et la recherche de textures. La surprise de nie, c'est que contrairement à ce qu'on pourrait attendre, ces trois improvisations sont très vivantes et réactives, parfois même violentes, fortes et agressives. Il s'agit de mettre en place différentes strates, d'assembler différentes couleurs et plusieurs timbres, mais de manière plutôt rapide et énergique. Les aplats sont en constant mouvement, l'intensité bouge sans cesse et les reliefs sont surprenants, autant que l'étendue des couleurs présentées. Trois musiciens qui semblent s'amuser tout en étant à l'aise sur de multiples terrains, des terrains souvent escarpés, fracturés, mais qui peuvent aussi durer et se plonger dans une calme contemplation du son. Chacun fait preuve d'une virtuosité monstrueuse, d'une recherche sonore aboutie sur un seul et même instrument. Et chacun sait écouter l'autre et réagir de la manière qui semble la plus naturelle et adéquate possible. Un grand moment d'improvisation libre, vivant, puissant, tendu et organique! Recommandé. Julien Héraud (ImprovSphere)

Enregistré à Lisbonne en novembre 2008, Nie donne à entendre Christine Abdelnour improviser en compagnie d’Axel Dörner et Ernesto Rodrigues. Le trio travaille-là à une architecture de papier sans cesse menacée : par les vents, coups d’archet, projectiles venant des musiciens eux-mêmes. Les graves de la trompette ont beau rêver de fondations solides pour ces constructions bientôt réduites à l’état de mirages : les engins d’inventions, anciennement instruments, sonneront l’heure des terribles déflagrations. Le disque n’en est que plus attachant. Guillaume Belhomme (Le Son du Grisli)

A trio of viola, alto sax and trumpet recorded in Lisbon in 2008 using mostly "extended techniques", those "other sounds" that can be made by almost any instrument and that have become ubiquitous. We get lots of sonorous hissing, metallic belching and buzzing and squealing string scrape placed in thoughtful juxtapositions. Sounds are often grouped together in short segments and attention is rewarded with startling timbral attenuations. An occasional "normal" instrumental sound — a clear trumpet note or plucked string — pops up, and there are short bits that revert to the old British quick-quick style. It's sort of like witnessing a quick dissolve of the music, from older to newer forms, back and forth.
Along the way we also get electronic sounding storms and odd bits of humor, as when we hear a failing circuit sound paired with a comically nagging buzz. Or the moment during the opening ""oft" wherein an air-raid siren gets coupled with a vacuum cleaner. I'm not sure that these pieces of music develop as much as just continue on. One short episode of sonic layering following another, each ending abruptly and then taking a sharp turn, until around the mid-point of the second piece "of". Here the layering is extended so that sounds lie on top of, as well as dove-tail, each other, and at one point a near-ballad sound grouping arises, and I'm almost positive I can hear a little laugh in the background before the illusion gets smeared into more metallic hiss.
I recommend listening to this set on headphones to hear all the nuances. You can play "what's that sound?" or just listen to the shifting sonorities dance around each other. Either way it's a fun listen and an excellent example of contemporary improvisation. Jeph Jerman (The Squid's Ear)

Este disco reúne o omnipresente Ernesto Rodrigues (na viola) com dois parceiros internacionais: a libanesa Christine Abdelnour (ex-Sehnaoui) no saxofone alto e o alemão Axel Dörner no trompete. Ao longo de três temas – estranhamente designados de “oft”, “of” e “fto” – o trio trabalha uma massa sonora tranquila, subtil, com as ideias bem entrelaçadas, num contínuo processo de encontro e desencontro. É particularmente interessante o trabalho no último tema, com sopros e cordas que, sem desenharem notas nem sons tradicionais (o ar a passar pelo metal, o dedilhar nas chaves, o arco quase imperceptível), vão desenhando sons abstractos que se vão articulando num curioso modo de comunicação. Nuno Catarino (Bodyspace.net)

A beautiful and subtle album presenting 3 extended improvisations from the patient and masterful hands of trumpeter Axel Dorner, violist Ernesto Rodrigues, and alto saxophonist Christine ABdelnour. (Squidco)

This is a very aesthetically pure record. One could say that they choose to play by a set of guiding principles. They favour pitchless sounds, block-shaped phrases, a close relation to silence and a type of interaction which avoids “call and response”. This choice to reduce could both be seen as a drawback, because it lacks expressivity (some might say) and humour, but it could also be seen as a benefit because the accumulation of all the aesthetically clean actions create a special universe that would otherwise not be possible.
Listening to this record puts you in a special state of mind. It’s a cleansing experience. It’s almost like going through a kind of meditation, but which goes into various degrees of intensity. You become aware of the everyday life-feeling. The musicians are expressing that reality. The un-suspenseful but beautiful feeling of a silence. The beauty in different white noises. The very slow moving rhythm of things changing. Then at times, things intensify and can become even a little bit uncomfortable, with very loud and high pitches. The densification and diffusion becomes of central importance in this music. This gives the listener something that keeps the focus up. Another very important aspect which enriches this music is the variation of phrase lengths, and the varying placement of phrases between the musicians, which makes the interaction dynamic. In the end, the restrictive aspects don’t seem restrictive at all, but become a playground where the musicians can play freely. The listener is left with the feeling of having been told a story, and of having heard something very musically motivated (as opposed to intellectually motivated).
As far as I could research, this is the only published meeting between Dörner and Abdelnour, which makes it a very important record. They fit each other like hand and glove. Rodrigues fits perfectly too. As much as I love to listen to collaborations with more contrasting styles, I found this record to be such a nice relief. To listen to something which is so clean and in one sense simple (although it is very complex). Simple isn’t easy… Mofir (Great Records of Free Improvisation)

Tracklist

1.	oft	12:26

2.	of	10:04

3.	fto	22:44

Credits

released January 1, 2012

Ernesto Rodrigues – Viola
Christine Abdelnour - Alto Saxophone
Axel Dörner - Trumpet

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