Adjacence
New Focus, 2024
9/10
The guitarist Daniel Lippel takes on an adventurous project here, where recordings with various ensembles and collaborators unfolds across 2 discs of strong attention to detail.
The original, “Utopian Prelude”, opens with the electric guitar and microtonal classical guitar making for both sophisticated and playful gestures, and it isn’t long until Nico Muhly’s “Wedge” showcases Jeffrey Irving’s frisky percussion alongside Lippel’s mesmerizing guitar.
Further into disc 1, “Moments”, by Tonia Ko, recruits Roberta Michel’s piccolo that suits the detailed guitar across 5 chapters, while Tyshawn Sorey’s “Ode To Gust Burns” starts disc 2 with a busy climate thanks to Cory Smythe’s piano, Clara Warnaar’s percussion, Rebekah Heller’s oboe and Lippel’s guitar via the mystery and wonder.
Residing near the end, “Five Prayers Of Hope” recruits strings thanks to Nurit Pacht (violin) and Jessica Meyer (viola), which emits cinematic gestures, and Adriaansz/Lippel’s “Dystopian Reprise” finishes with Lippel’s electric guitar acrobatics that balances rock with chamber nods.
A very stylistic endeavor that uses microtonality, improvisation, timbral experimentation and texture to its advantage, every selection is a highly articulate version of chamber sounds that warrants repeated listens.
Travels well with: Patrick Yim- One; Adam Mirza- Partial Knowledge