专辑简介

by François Couture

On November 23, 1986, at the Galerie Maximilien Guiol, a small art space in Paris, Alan Silva, Roger Turner, Misha Lobko, Didier Petit, and Bruno Girard shared the stage for the first time. They knew each other well, since they had all performed alongside one another in various groupings, but as a quintet, as this quintet, it was their first concert. From the moment Turner starts hitting his metal scraps, they all dive in and begin to Take Some Risks. A satisfying session, focused and highly intense, it takes the listener on a challenging but rewarding journey. The CD contains two freely improvised pieces. "Standard Equipment" lasts three-quarters of an hour. It begins with Turner (drums) and Petit (cello) establishing a dialogue consisting of short gestures. Very quickly it becomes obvious that listening and playing will have equal importance. The other improvisers join in, adding colors and depth to the music without inflating it. The three string players (Girard, Petit, and Silva, respectively, on violin, cello, and bass) occasionally team up to form a microtonal section, while Lobko attacks pizzicato notes on his clarinet like it were a percussion instrument. This long piece, attuned to the Spontaneous Music Ensemble's conception of free improv, features many magical moments. The encore "Some," eight minutes long, starts with a good percussion solo but never lifts off afterwards. Never mind this weakness, Take Some Risks makes a fine album documenting a special meeting from a period that has been underrecorded.