CD Reviews: HORACIO STRAIJER : Marimba y Bombo Leguero (SLAMCD 508)
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Posted by: Adminon Wednesday, September 29, 2004 - 03:51 PM |
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Paul Donnelly
Argentine percussionist Straijer calls this cd ‘music to sit and listen to’ which seems like good advice since it is fairly gentle and absorbing though not merely as background music. The marimba is his main instrument and features on all 9 tracks but he also employs a range of other percussion including bombo leguero, various ‘samples’ of vibes and glockenspiel and derbuka. Together with guitarist, Sergio Romano, he produces a set of beguiling compositions/improvisations that mix folk rhythms and melodies.
The first track ‘Antiguo dueno de las flechas’, by Ariel Ramirez, is a lulling combination of gentle marimba and rippling guitar over a subdued, though insistent rhythm. The mood is maintained throughout and is quietly hypnotic and soothing. Slightly more sprightly is ‘Little Hay Road’ with the glockenspiel adding a further brightness and colour. ‘Vuelta de Rocha’, a Straijer composition, is notable for the softly raining marimba and guitar set against a variety of percussion, whilst ‘Arcos’ manages to create a further muted soundscape through the use of glockenspiel and vibraphone samples as the marimba hovers throughout.
There are a couple of tracks where Straijer is alone, for example, ‘Astor’ which is a more percussive piece and the last track, ‘Zamba At Home’ where the marimba takes a solo voice.
It is a brief cd, only 25 minutes or so, and seems more like a taster than a full album but the low key atmosphere is sustained successfully. Together these tracks weave a warm, if somewhat limited, ambience and whet the appetite for a lengthier recording.
Paul Donnelly
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