Somewhat like the Australian composer and pianist Ross Bolleter, who has made a career from composing pieces for pianos that have been ruined by neglect, the elements and wildlife and salvaged from the Outback, Bourne has a fascination for what he calls “infirm instruments”. He was offered some harpsichords by the Leeds Conservatoire on the understanding that he would use them “as is” – no messing about with repairs and tuning – and that they would be given a respectful cremation when they had served their purpose.
In those pieces of Bolleter’s that I have heard he writes relatively conventional music and lets the instrument produce the surprises – it’s effectively the instrument that creates the arrangements. Disc two of this set follows a somewhat similar process. The compositions are sometimes beguiling but are given a tart and occasionally unsettling edge by the untempered pitches.
Despite the title of this disc the performances seem to have been duets between Bourne and Slater, the recordings subjected to drastic editing and then given to Martin for final decoration with electronic effects.
On disc two the characters of the harpsichords, with glimpses of their original glory, show through in several places, providing moments of almost surreal elegance. The same cannot really be said of the tracks on disc one. I confess I found them hard-going and somewhat oppressive (this from someone whose most revered bands include Last Exit); they evoke a team of Cecil Taylors let loose in the keyboard factory. However, I can see that there are times when I would find them very cathartic.
Discography
CD1: (1) All Three At Once: Rule; Quincy; Handkerchief; The Helmet Of Disaster; Charles; Wound; We Love Having You Around; Closure (46.26)
CD2: Each One, Separately: Burn All Three; John; Ticknail; Red Brick; Red Badger; Red Handed; Carded; Keep Both; Brown Bins (33.08)
(1) Bourne; Glen Leach; Nika Ticciati (hpscd).
(2) Bourne (hpscd); Nightports: Mark Slater (hpscd; electronic processing); Adam Martin (hpscd; digital and analogue effects).
All Airedale, Yorkshire, probably 2024.
Discus 175CD
