July 31, 2012! Talea Record Release on Tzadik
Anamorphosis: Music by Fausto Romitelli
Read what Beth Weisser says about her experience in working on the new disc.
In March of this year, Talea traveled to EMPAC to record works by one of our favorite composers, Fausto Romitelli. Recording is something that comes with the territory of being a musician, but there is something still very alien about it.
A performance is like life: it’s now and it’s here. There will be good and bad moments, both of which will either fade into oblivion or transform to exist as memories. There is a direct connection between the performers and the audience- a symbiotic energy that can expand only within the limit of the space. A recording is more like a time capsule. It is about some future, determined or not, and it is not about here but rather, there. With a time capsule, one gathers the items and ideas of the time and protects them in a container for future generations to understand what today was.
Talea’s Romitelli disc is our first time capsule. It is our way of sharing with the broadest audience through time and space what we understood this music to be at this point in time. Talea has been performing Romitelli’s works from some of its earliest concerts and from its beginning, the Talea Ensemble has felt deeply committed to Romitelli’s works. We have had the opportunity to bring some of his masterpieces to the US for the first time and we have grown to better understand his sound world and his vision. We have also had the opportunity to work with and speak to many people who knew him well.
Because we all feel so invested, the concentration and care in the sessions was palpable and because of the intensity of the experience, we learned more about ourselves and each other with every take we did. Romitelli came more into our physical, intellectual and emotional selves than ever before. While creating a vehicle for posterity is a great responsibility, it is also a great privilege. Eternalizing the ephemeral is a challenging endeavor, but when the time capsule consists of great music, it is rewarding and an honor to be a part of.
We are so grateful to EMPAC, Argeo Ascani, John Zorn, and Tzadik Label for making this recording possible.
