Unholy Elisabeth | 50:57 |
Musicians
"A" Trio
Mazen Kerbaj: Trumpet
Sharif Sehnaoui: Acoustic Guitar
Raed Yassin: Double Bass
AMM
Eddie Prevost: Percussion
John Tilbury: Piano
Originally released in CD format by Al Masklakh and in LP format by Unrock
All music improvised by Kerbaj, Prevost, Sehnaoui, Tilbury & Yassin
No cuts, no overdubs, no use of electronics
Recorded by Andreas Pysiewicz at St. Elisabeth Kirche, Berlin on August 27, 2015 in the context of DAAD's Mikromusik Festival
Mixed and mastered by Fadi Tabbal at Tunefork Studios, Beirut, Lebanon
Artwork & design by Mazen Kerbaj
The “A” Trio has often worked on collaborations with other musicians and groups. Two of these collaborations have already been released on albums ("Beach Party at Mirna el Chalouhi" with the Lebanese punk rock band Scrambled Eggs and "Burj al Imam" with the American folk rock musician Alan Bishop). This third instalment documents the trio’s encounter with one of the most influential free improv bands of all time, the pioneering AMM.
The record captures two generations of improvisers with a very different approach, dancing slowly along a very thin line of fine-tuned, both, clear and crackling improvised sounds.
“In the resonant space of Berlin’s St Elisabeth Church in August 2015, this vastly experienced AMM duo got together with three younger musicians from Beirut. They too make music that is physically involving, direct and sometimes raw in its vibrational immediacy, yet highly refined in terms of neural alertness.”
Julian Cowley, The Wire Magazine
AAMM
AMM is a British free improvisation group that was founded in London, England, in 1965. The group was initially composed of Keith Rowe on guitar, Lou Gare on saxophone, and Eddie Prévost on drums. The three men shared an interest in exploring music beyond the boundaries of conventional jazz, as in free jazz and free improvisation. AMM has never been popular but has been influential in improvised music. Most of their albums have been released by Matchless Recordings, which was run by Eddie Prévost.
“A” Trio is a Lebanese improvisation group founded by Mazen Kerbaj, Sharif Sehnaoui, and Raed Yassin. Formed in 2002 in Beirut during the second Irtijal Festival of Experimental Music, the three musicians went on to record their first free jazz album entitled “ A ”. Their music later moved away from its jazz roots towards a more textural approach, relying strongly on prepared and extended techniques for a heavy diversion of their respective instruments. After working together in trio and various other contexts for many years, Kerbaj, Sehnaoui and Yassin reached a characteristic sound that has been fondly described as “textural swing.” Creative yet simple, acoustic yet powerful, their live performances are playful and rely on a strong visual component.
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