Florian Ross - Architexture
Release Date: 25 September 2020
What do architects like Oscar Niemeyer, Maya Lin or Daniel Burnham have in common with music? What is the role of the physical spaces where music is created (both in composition as in performance)? How do the rules, design and construction of spaces correlate with the sonic space created in music? I think both architecture and music are forms of art which are deeply rooted in constructive rules that long to be stretched or even broken.
Jazz is particularly close to architecture: clear lines and forms are juxtaposed with wild excursions into improvisation. It’s hard to find two other forms of expression where the connection to tradition and possible ways one can break from it live so closely together.
The tension between composition and improvisation works much like the tension between “Classical Music” and Jazz. I like exploring those rifts, always with a deep awareness of the past and a bright look towards the future. With this music I invite the listener to equally wander through constructs of music and discover structures of sound.
The combination of woodwind ensemble and rhythm section - unprecedented in jazz history - represents an ideal platform for this idea. The solo woodwind group offers the opportunity to weave the two ensembles closer together and thus prevent the classical ensemble from becoming an accompanying carpet of sound, as is often the case with music exploring the intersection of Jazz and Classical music.
A live performance of music in a concert setting only exists for the duration of the performance - like a bridge that is torn down 60 minutes after its construction. In contrast, the audio recording of new compositions according to the composer’s scores and arrangements represent a lasting materialization of the creative content, just like the construction of a building according to an architect's plan. Only then can the intention and construction of the work be permanently "seen,” "heard,” or explored.
Florian Ross (comp, pno)
Sebastian Gille (sax)
David Helm (bass)
Fabian Arends (dr)
Susanne Blumenthal (cond.)
The Event Wind Ensemble
