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| 4.391 Ft
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| 1. | Theory and practice
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| 2. | The Wall
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| 3. | The rules of the game
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| 4. | Archipelago
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| 5. | No exit
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| 6. | The inner fear
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| 7. | The other way
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| 8. | The great escape
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| 9. | Fresh air
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| 10. | New dawn
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Jazz / Modern Creative, Jazz Instrument, Piano Jazz
Recorded in Leningrad on 2 April 1981
Sergey Kuryokhin, piano
Alan Mosley Digital Transfer Producer, Digital Transfers
Alexander Kan Liner Notes
Leo Feigin Original Album Producer, Producer
Lora Denis Design
Stan Wijnans Engineer
Cover photograph (reproduced above) by James F. Quinn; design by Lora Denis.
Original LP released in 1981 with the same title created an uproar and controversy both inside and outside of the Soviet Union. Reissued with three bonus tracks from the same recording session.
In his notes, Alex Kan paints a breathtaking picture of how this tape was recorded and smuggled out of the USSR and what happened to Kuryokhin after the release of the LP in the West.
The Russian pianist Kuryokhin -- while not particularly influential in America -- was nevertheless one of the most astoundingly gifted and original players to have ever played jazz, in any country. Read elsewhere about his life story (he died a tragically premature death in 1996 at a young age); our concern here is a review of this, a reissue of his remarkable first album. A relic from 1981, when Russia was still the Soviet Union and playing free jazz in that country was almost literally a crime, this solo recording was paradoxically first released by Melodia, the state's official record label. The record documents an amazing talent, who, had he been born in America, would probably have been widely considered one of the greatest free jazz pianists ever (he is anyway, regardless of perception). Kuryokhin had an almost supernatural technique, his lines are played as quickly and are as sharply articulated as those of any pianist this side of Art Tatum. Reminiscent of Cecil Taylor (as ultimately it seems all free jazz pianists must be, to an extent) and perhaps Glenn Gould (in terms of touch), Kuryokhin nevertheless sounds like no one but himself. Occasionally he plays so fast with such clarity, one is tempted to believe that the tape's been sped up. He's an obsessive pianist, worrying over and embellishing small motives until they've given all there is to give. He has a marvelously percussive attack and a bracing sense of rhythm; the piano is a set of 81 tuned drums in his hands, played with great subtlety and depth of feeling. Kuryokhin extends conventional technique as well -- he's not afraid to go inside and pluck and strum the instrument's innards, or tap and bang, drum-like, on its various surfaces. This album is rather strangely recorded -- the piano sounds a bit like a toy, as if the mics were positioned a bit off-axis. Kuryokhin renders the odd sound irrelevant. The album isn't perfect; the artist's formal sense was not very sophisticated, at least at this early stage of his development. His idea of form was mainly to explore one idea until its possibilities were exhausted, then move on to the next. Nevertheless, his profound imagination and skills as a pianist win the day. This is an incredible document and shouldn't be missed by any serious student of avant-garde piano. ~ Chris Kelsey, All Music Guide
Sergey Kuryokhin
Active Decades: '70s, '80s and '90s
Born: Jun 16, 1954 in Murmansk, Russia
Died: Jul 09, 1996 in St. Petersburg, Russia
Genre: Jazz
Styles: Avant-Garde Jazz, Jazz Instrument, Minimalism, Modern Creative, Piano Jazz
Experimental pianist Sergei Kuryokhin was one of the leading lights of the Russian avant-garde until his death in 1996. Moving in between several experimental rock groups and more classically influenced material, Kuryokhin was a controversial figure in his time, once appearing on Russian television to prove that Lenin was not a human being, but rather a mushroom. His later switch to the ultra right-wing National Bolshevik Party caused a riff among the avant-garde Russian community who could not figure out if he was genuine or simply pulling off a satirical prank.
Kuryokhin was born in Murmansk on June 16, 1954, and moved to Leningrad in 1971. Although his early career was focused on classical piano, he slowly moved to experiment in other veins such as jazz and hard rock before becoming interested in free jazz and improvised avant-garde music. A member of the Leningrad Conservatory and Institute of Culture, he was later expelled for his musical interests. Over the course of his career, he was a member of several groups, including Post, Bol'shoi Zheleznyi, and Gol'fstrim. He came to prominence with Aquarium and most famously with Pop-Mekhanika, which he formed in 1985. That group featured an ever-changing lineup of underground rock musicians from Leningrad. Mixing together musical styles from classical to progressive rock to operetta, the group performed live concerts with performance artists and an array of domestic and exotic animals. Meanwhile, the composer continued his interest in composing avant-garde music of all sorts with collaborators and on his own until the time of his death.
--- Geoff Orens, All Music Guide |
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