abstract mechanics |cs165

So the first two Creative Sources releases then. The first here is titled Abstract Mechanics and is credited to João Lucas, who is the composer here and one half of the musical duo that performed the music, playing piano, accordion and electronics alongside cellist and long-term collaborator Miguel Mira. The music was composed to accompany a dance performance by a dancer named Andresa Soares. All of this information comes from the liner notes. I had never heard of either musician or Soares beforehand. The first of the seven tracks here is inexplicably a three minute long improvisation that does not seem linked in any way to the main six-part composition that makes up the rest of the album. It is also probably my least favourite of what is otherwise a curious release. The rest of the pieces are (I think) multi-tracked, post-production heavy works that combine a mixture of traditional chamber playing with electronic parts and unexpected sections, such as at one brief moment when boy’s voice suddenly appears. The opening improv piece lacks the studio craftsmanship of the rest of the disc. The main body of the music revolves around the piano, cello and accordion, shifting from moments when Luc Ferrari springs to mind, to others when they seem to be under the spell of Johannes Brahms. As I said, its a curious release, though it would be wrong to say that its individual parts do not work together, because somehow they do all seem to belong.
There is one grating element. It is most definitely an unfair, irrational criticism for me to make but I generally dislike the sound that accordions produce when played “properly”, and unfortunately every time it appears here, scrabbling its way through separate little passages I don’t like it at all. Where different instruments are combined however, particularly when the electronics are used I enjoy the music more. Sadly though, the pieces are all just a little too short and deliberately episodic for these sections to hang around and develop for long enough.
One curious thing though, the music here does sound like the perfect accompaniment to a dancer. It was apparently made with a video of Soares’ dancing as a guide, so that the music is set to an already existing piece of improvised dance. There is a sprightly, bouncy feel to it in places, and softer, slower movements elsewhere. Would I have notiiced this if I had not known that the music was written to accompany dance? I’m not sure, but maybe not. Does the sound here stand up as a piece of music in itself without its visual companion? Well yes it does. Much of the recording here is probably not my cup of tea, a bit too busy, a bit too ambitious, but it is technically well put together and I am sure it has its audience. What on earth is that sleeve image all about though? Richard Pinnell (The Watchful Ear)

Though prickly, the music has an underlying romanticism that forms a kind of connective tissue between the jumpy piano, the skittering cello and electronics/field recordings. Oddly unique sounding, though; can't quite come up with a reasonable comparison; sometimes Muhal at his warmest. Or a spikier Blue 'Gene' Tyranny. Hell, there's a section that reminds me of "1983....(A Merman I Should Turn to Be)". I gradually got into this a good bit, but it's a curveball to be sure. Proceed with caution. Brian Olewnick (Just Outside)

Music written for Andresa Soares’ choreography “It was a very abstract thing.” Music focused on improvisation, although there is a canvas, and even entirely scored bits it seems. João Lucas plays piano, accordion and (light and occasional) electronics; Miguel Mira on cello. The music focuses on the deep-running interplay between Lucas (mostly at the piano) and Mira. Non-idiomatic music charged with emotion and busy with motion, with a slight touch of tango surfacging here and there. François Couture (Monsieur Delire)

[…] O peso da partitura em “Abstract Mechanics” também é evidente. Trata-se da banda sonora de uma coreografia de Andresa Soares (“Era Uma Coisa Mesmo Muito Abstracta”), em linha com os investimentos de João Lucas como compositor de cena. E no entanto, é a performance pianística que sobressai, mesmo que aqui ou ali banhada em “soundscapes” electrónicos e completada pelos comentários muito soltos de Mira (aqui com a responsabilidade de introduzir nas tramas a variável “out” que no outro disco surge por via da intercalação de improvisações absolutas). A dimensão é mais “vanguardista” do que a de “White Works”, sim, mas o factor melodia está igualmente em primeiro plano, bem como toda a particular semiótica do piano.
Em conclusão, eis duas edições que, não obstante assistidas por outros propósitos, dignificam como poucas outras em Portugal, nestes domínios, a arte erigida sobre o teclado branco e negro. Admirável! Rui Eduardo Paes

Music written for Andresa Soares’ choreography “It was a very abstract thing.” Music focused on improvisation, although there is a canvas, and even entirely scored bits it seems. João Lucas plays piano, accordion and (light and occasional) electronics; Miguel Mira on cello. The music focuses on the deep-running interplay between Lucas (mostly at the piano) and Mira. Non-idiomatic music charged with emotion and busy with motion, with a slight touch of tango surfacging here and there. François Couture (Monsieur Délire)

La suite Abstract Mechanics est une composition du pianiste portugais João Lucas. La musique a été créée en studio en s’inspirant de la chorégraphie (filmée et montée pour l’occasion) Era uma coisa mesmo muito abstracto de la danseuse Andresa Soares. Cet aspect primordial de la méthode de création pourrait gêner l’appréhension de la musique. Il n’en est rien, tant cette dernière peut être appréciée sans complément visuel. João Lucas, qui gère également quelques effets électroniques, intègre divers field recordings et joue de l’accordéon, est épaulé par le violoncelliste Miguel Mira. Si la chorégraphie était, selon les mots de sa conceptrice, « a very abstract thing », il est plutôt agréable de se laisser bercer par son accompagnement sonore, essentiellement d’un registre romantique. Alternant atmosphères fantomatiques et passages plus lyriques, la suite associe notes de piano égrenées lentement, sons de gouttes d’eau tombant sur un toit et cordes pincées à larges intervalles. Par moments, les instruments s’emballent avant de céder la place à des nappes d’effets électroniques. Mais vite, on revient à ce climat de langueur poétique seulement troublé par des sifflements mystérieux, voix d’enfants et autres passages d’accordéon déglingué.La technique d’enregistrement employée donne parfois l’impression que les instruments sont joués à divers endroits d’une grande pièce. Cet aspect confère à l’ensemble une spatialité qui fait écho à la destination initiale de la suite. Jean Dezert (Le Son du Grisli)

Fascinating semi-solid conceptions for piano, accordion and electronics (Lucas) and a delightfully evocative cello (Miguel Mira). The soundtrack to Era Uma Coisa Mesmo Muito Abstracta - a choreography by Andresa Soares - Abstract Mechanics is a work of uncomplicated digestibility despite the involvedness of some of its parts. An unambiguously poetic music, either used to highlight a (probably very intriguing) series of dance figures or enjoyed as a musical piece per se. Lucas and Mira explore the instrumental registers with a combination of obsession and scientific curiosity, alternating passages bordering on the romantic side of things (never deprived of surprising factors) with moments of apparent scarcity of rationality permeated by a larger use of improvisation and discordance. But they always manage to fall straight on their feet as one realizes that the tumbles were just picturesque tricks, the couple remaining entirely aware of where the music is going. A passionate yet at the same time light hearted performance, emanating scents of transcendence but also revealing a painstaking care for the sonic details. The fact that this writer has not been able, in about six listens, to compare the material to anything else in recent memory should tell a lot. Perhaps those who recall Joachim Kühn’s playing on Carolyn Carlson’s Dark will find something here that might gratify their taste. Just a faraway association, though. Massimo Ricci (Temporary Fault)

[...] In many ways, João Lucas' settings for cello and electronics are more surprising by being (at least in spurts) more conventional. The Portugal resident's primary instrument is the piano and he plays accordion as well on Abstract Mechanics while providing intermittent electronic beds for the duo with cellist Miguel Mira. The piano is often the dominant voice, as Lucas seems to struggle against a bit of formalism. He is no doubt an adept classical player and much of the disc's charm comes from the waxing and waning of orthodoxy; he is fond of playing taut phrases without feeling the need to resolve them. The cello and electronics also seem to come in waves, often feeling like a single voice (more in sympathy, though, than via electronic linkage). About a quarter of an hour into the seven-part suite, a sing-song vocal (provided by Thiago Lucas) enters with dubious support from the instrumentalists, again creating a sensation that this all should be familiar, even if the elements don't quite go together and yet aren't quite separable. Ultimately, Abstract Mechanics is an enjoyably disorienting exercise in off-kilter arrangement. [...] Kurt Gottschalk (All About Jazz)