Review of Twenty Ten [12k1066]

Vital Weekly (NL)

If I’m not mistaken, this is the first triple set on 12K, and its by Kenneth Kirschner, which is hardly a surprise. Kirschner plays long pieces and need time. So three discs and ‘just’ four pieces. I had him down as a piano player and computer musician, but in fact he plays all sorts of instruments, such as say metallophones and xylophones in the first piece ‘January 4, 2011’, which is quite a chaotic piece, at least for some one like Kirschner, who I also noted down as ‘quiet’ man. But in this piece he bangs away, and the great thing is that it is hard to tell what exactly the level of processing is, or in fact if there is any processing at all. It doesn’t like it, and that might be the best compliment one can give (the press text says there is no processing of any computer kind – well alright). It reminded me of some very old tapes I have from the Kubus label and a tape by De Sekte, both ancient Dutch musical projects. The second piece on disc one is however much more like what we know from Kirschner: piano, strings and celeste play a very soft piece of music, the essential microsound like recording. A true beauty.

The second disc has one piece, in which we hear 142 different chords without repetition played on strings, woodwinds and horns. Another fine beauty of great sparseness. After each chord there is a bit of silence, making this highly contemplative music. The third disc has a piece for two piano’s and is perhaps the kind of music we know best from him: music with sparse notes and a lot of hiss. Here no extra silence was added and it makes this a piece that has continuos sound throughout, sometimes abruptly moving somewhere else in a strange twist of fate. (FdW)

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