Jannis Anissegos (flute)
Maria Anissegou (cello)
Antonis Anissegos (piano)
credits
released March 1, 2010
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(text: Bernhard Lang)
A heptachord
When one contemplates Greek music, this rapidly transforms into a contemplation on the essence of music itself, as thinking about thinking (scepsis) as well as thinking about music are both of Greek origin, spanning from Pythagoras and Plato to Xenakis.
The output at hand displays a series of original approaches from the viewpoint of the 21st century: performed with skill and intensity by the exquisite ensemble IAMA, these are seven contemporary musical statements of high individuality.
Beginning with the work of Papageorgiou, we immerse ourselves into the mythical world of timelessness; fragile flute sounds surround an obscure piano texture: cyclical movement, consistently thematised in the work of Papageorgiou, alludes to the philosophical orientations of Hermann Markus Preßl, the eternal recurrence of the ever different, Heraclitus. A temporal sound that opens itself up; silence and reverberations complement each other, the listening merges with structure.
The second piece by Hadjileontiadis introduces the elliptic aesthetics of punctual noise-like sounds, which are reminiscent of Furrer and Lachenmann, positioned tautly on a destructible temporal axis. Again, it is the flute that takes on the narrative role in a highly differentiated palette of sound. The work often compresses itself into expressive outcry.
The third piece by Economou initially astonishes with an insistent loop of dense mixture, then falls into the void, lifts itself up again, with excitement that borders mania, while it unravels a subtle soundscape during pauses. A clear structure, orientated towards organic constellations, which slightly evokes early works by Pavel Schimansky.
The fourth piece by Michaelidis leans right from the start towards the magical, Cage-like organic world of silence and of small incidences, which call for sonic contemplation. One also finds here an indifference towards time boundaries; one finds meditation and whispering treasures.
Here, in particular, one appreciates the excellent quality of this recording; very often in recordings the outcome does not do justice to instances where sound is all too subtle.
Kokoras in the fifth work distances himself drastically from the previous compositions. Sounds from the interior of the piano, alluding to Einstürzende Neubauten, alert the listener, while virtual undulations of bizarre sound mixtures allow us an insight into timeless landscapes.
The sixth piece by Lapidakis returns to the microcosm of detail, of isolation and tenderness. Tapping sounds on strings, flute tremolos and then a sudden endless dodecaphonic sequence, which yields the already heard to a totally divergent sphere. A rewarding surprise.
In the CD’s seventh work, Anissegos presents a reserved, contemplative epilogue. The listener perceives the crystalline structure behind the notes, a latent order. Sound is here the surface, untouched and reflexive. One hears a continuum, a constantly vibrating texture, the timelessness of the canonical.
Indeed, seven is a good number; it is here proven anew.
Recorded at Studio of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki by Kostas Kontos in 2009
Tracks 1 & 4 recorded by Dimitris Christodoulidis
Mixing and Mastering by Kostas Kontos
Artwork: Fotini Filoxenidou
Photography: Dimitris Triantafyllou
Produced by Dimitris Papadopoulos
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