CD – 901 Editions

What remains of the fire – to quote Jacques Derrida – also involves rekindling the embers, burdening ourselves with what was, the residues and the simple gesture of gathering what remains. A reminder that retains no traces or clear juxtapositions of sounds and spaces, in an evocative spiral of breathing, creaks, rustles, metallic abrasions, iterations obtained primarily from wood and stone, brought back to life. It is the magnification of sonic details that makes the sequences constructed by Vittorio Guindani, a Brescia-based sound artist, who previously released Jisei on 901 Editions in 2020, so special. On Materia Breve, his research remains faithful to an approach of collective listening, and listening to what would otherwise risk being lost in the indistinct reality of the every day. The album consists of fragments of field recordings and sound images that assume an unprecedented and revealing value. Each sound becomes a fragment of memory that emerges from the shadows to make itself present, generating a sense of intimacy with the listener. It is not, however, a simple exercise of cataloging the real, as much as a poetic transfiguration that recycles the vitality hidden in the humblest objects.The work moves between contemplation and tension, between pauses that amplify silence and microscopic vibrations that interrupt our stillness. There are echoes of Japanese culture and its link to impermanence, a sensibility that Guindani translates into delicate yet incisive sound forms, capable of redefining the perception of space. As on Jisei, the relationship between sound and environment is never static, but in constant transformation: natural materials, carefully manipulated, become vehicles of minimal narratives that roll slowly, without losing intensity. Imperceptible iterations and modulations create a fabric that seems to breathe, establishing a direct dialogue with the listener. It is in this ability to transform detail into universe where the strength of Materia Breve resides: a work that invites us to pause, to listen deeply, to find in the fragments the echo of a possible totality. In this sense, Guindani’s work fits within the catalog of 901 Editions, a label that since 2018 has distinguished itself for a coherent and variable vision, attentive to the value of pause and contemplation. Materia Breve thus becomes a further step in this path, an invitation to inhabit sound as a place of reflection, in which what remains is never just residue, but possibility of rebirth.

 

Vittorio Guindani – Materia Breve