2 souffleurs sur 1 fil

Description

For his seventh album as a leader, saxophonist and composer Eric Séva surprises us, as he usually does, with a unique album that once again does not resemble the previous one. He approaches his music with a love for taking risks and stepping out of his comfort zone, which is indeed the best definition of a jazz musician. Always inspired and eager to renew himself, Eric Séva presents us with the seventh chapter of his work, driven by an ambitious orchestral dimension, where he has surrounded himself with a quartet of musicians from classical music that he has integrated into his trio (composed of bassist Kevin Reveyrand and drummer Jean-Luc Di Fraya). Attentive to the harmonious blend of sound textures, Eric Séva did not opt for a predictable string quartet but preferred to mix strings and woodwinds in a lower register, in order to provide the appropriate sound backdrop that gives wings to his saxophone (mainly tenor and occasionally soprano). He is, in fact, the only improvising soloist in this formation without a harmonic instrument, where the quartet, consisting of an alto violin (David Vainsot), a cello (Grégoire Korniluk), a bass clarinet (Nicolas Fargeix), and a bassoon (Philippe Hanon), scrupulously plays the scores and arrangements masterfully written by Eric Séva. This album, wonderfully arranged from beginning to end, offers a coherent and deeply moving musical narrative, centered around different journeys evoked by soundscapes carried by elegant and sophisticated acoustic chamber music. ‘Adeo’ means ‘To Go Towards’, as music must be shared and addressed to the audience. The emotions felt by the musicians must project and travel within each listener and spectator. This is the motto of Eric Séva, who learned music in popular dances in Seine-et-Marne at the dance hall run by his parents, which is why melody, rhythm, song, and dance are so important in his compositions. - - the perfection of a puzzle, which has the great merit of being both accessible and demanding. Throughout his previous albums, from ‘Folklores Imaginaires’ to ‘Résonances’, including ‘Espaces Croisés’ or ‘Nomade Sonore’, Eric Séva has always placed the notion of travel at the center of his music, exploring a new formal and sound concern each time. And it is indeed this common thread that runs through ‘Adeo’ with its different climates, its remarkable palette of colors, and the richness of the blend of timbres. The melodies, sounds, and rhythms contained in these compositions are a call to travel, real or imaginary, where art music is inseparable from popular music. The eight tracks of the album are driven by this theme, and it is no coincidence that the album ends with a relevant arrangement of a Romanian dance by Bartok (Tanz Aus Butschum), who better than anyone has managed to combine the demands of classical music with the accessibility of popular music. With this final dance, Eric Séva creates a clever bridge between written music and improvised music. The album starts brilliantly with Accano, centered around a harmonious search where the sound of the group is perfectly heard, with all instruments singing and dancing in a sound atmosphere that would not have been denied by Astor Piazzolla. With Mouvements Attendus, the anticipation of a movement and the patience it engenders are at the heart of this composition, which advances slowly and subtly, around the echoing canon played by the quartet. A subtle sound illustration of the confinement related to Covid. La Septième Porte is certainly the flagship piece of the album. We know the magical and mystical significance of the number 7 that Eric Séva points out with this seventh album, centered around an instrumentation carried by seven musicians! It is, of course, about open doors that each time lead to a new door…. - - Semeurs de Sons, located at the center of the album, is a metaphor about the art of composing, where the composer sows sounds hoping for a harmonious harvest that is shared among all. With Temps Suspendu, it is a slow melancholic ballad carried by a beautiful melody, alluding to confinement. Time stops, and it is a moment of observation and letting go, in order to better bounce back… And this is exactly what happens with Au Jour Le Jour, a pop and joyful piece that evokes a way of living in the present moment with simplicity, around a slightly wobbly and charming refrain. The artistic introspection of ‘Adeo’ is embodied by these Danses Essentielles that come from the deepest inner gardens of Eric Séva. These essential dances, played on soprano saxophone, embody movement and expression; they are essential and vital for moving forward. - - Lionel ESKENAZI