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London Improvisers Orchestra | The Hearing Continues

150 minutes of improvisation by a complete orchestra, phew...
CD, Emanem

Tekst: Bas Ickenroth

Publicatiedatum: 03 december 2001

There's hardly a more appropriate name for a collective to find anywhere in the whole universe. The London Improvisers Orchestra are based in London, make improvised music, and have thirty to fourty musicians, so you can call this a complete orchestra. The two discs are completely filled with improvisations and semi-composed pieces, and the music is among the most difficult I have ever heard. The music here is often referred to as 'new music', but that's a term no one except the inventors of the term itself will understand. 'Difficult stuff' would be more appropriate. Both discs begin with a totally free improvisation by the whole orchestra, and one would imagine that improvisation by thirty people at the same time would lead to total chaos. But the quality of the classicaly skilled and well experienced musicians make sure that subsiding into anarchy is not an option. The remaining pieces are not as free as the two openingstracks. For example, in the amazing 'How Can You Delude Yourself' the music itself is free improv, but with two very restrictive rules: One is that whenever a player hears even the smallest amount of silence, they must immediately start playing and fill the gap. The other is that if a player becomes aware that more than two other orchestra members are playing besides themselves, they must immediately stop. A very cerebral approach indeed, but stunning nevertheless. In 'Orphy:Us' marimba player Orphy Robinson improvises in real time over a pre-recorded session from the orchestra, because he couldn't make it at the day of the recordings. The result sounds open and transparent, with a slight jazzy undertone. 'Birthday Piece' is constructed in a way that the conducter holds up cards with numbers, and if the numbers are part of the birthdate of the players, they must start improvising. And every piece has its own rules, rules that aren't recognised without reading the booklet. In there are detailled explanations, and they help to appreciate this music. Without it, the music would have been fascinating, sometimes even very beautiful, but the overall impression would have been 'difficult stuff'. With the explanations about the how and why it all becomes clearer. But after 150 minutes of abstract atonal full orchestra improvisations, my head has had enough information to process for the next six weeks.

http://www.kindamuzik.net/recensie/london-improvisers-orchestra/the-hearing-continues/1066/
Meer London Improvisers Orchestra op KindaMuzik: http://www.kindamuzik.net/artiest/london-improvisers-orchestra