★Fou Records
L'Ile des Trésors
Jean-Jacques Duerinckx: baritone and sopranino saxophonesJean-Marc Foussat: AKS synth, piano, toys and voiceRecorded live at Haekem Theatre. Brussels, the 16th of May 2023 by Jean-Marc Foussat
Rustiques
A study of contrasts as French improvising synth player Jean-Marc Foussat joins with legendary saxophonist & bass clarinetist Sylvain Guerineau, whose work in both jazz tradition and free playing finds him a lyrical and expressive player, bringing flexibility in combination with a seemingly disparate foil in Foussat, heard in six succint dialogs of unconventional compatibility.
"Recorded at home in November 2022 in the Loiret, this curious little regional river which gives its name to the depart…
Crusts
"Piano and reeds duet. More precisely, Didier Fréboeuf, the pianist, is also credited for clavietta and objects and the prompter Jean-Luc Petit, tenor and sopranino sax as well as contrabass clarinet. Three Crusts. Not badly chosen title compared to the improvised music that they play towards each other: these two do not stay on the surface of things. They work in depth on their exchanges by developing a nice variety of playing modes both on the keyboard and in the strings and on the reeds.
I ap…
jouent pour Stephane Guillaumon qui danse sans faire de bruit
Duo live electronic improvisation by Jean-Marc Foussat and Leo Remke-Rochard. Recorded at the Dojo in Villeurbanne, France, on January 7th, 2023.
Libres (Festival de Massy 26 Octobre 1975)
"Armonicord. In 1977 an album was released under the name of Armonicord, of which I have just found a copy through a mutual friend: Esprits de Sel. Having heard of the album's release at that time, the memory of the presence of harpsichordist Odile Bailleux and drummer Christian Lete undoubtedly made me imagine a possible sort of chamber music. In the cover, we can admire the graphic scores of baritone saxophonist Jouk Minor, all in curves and ellipses with instrument and timing indications. A m…
Les Beaux Jours
"Intense and stormy "vintage" electronic music - ethereal loops or organ or keyboard effects - synalgias of the unresolved - (AKS by Jean-Marc Foussat) goaded and torn by the extreme bites of the soprano saxophonist (Guy Frank Pellerin). The feeling of duration of their improvisations (22, 19 and 25 minutes) diminishes as the spells fall in this weather of the emerging moment. A nice variety of games in the game phases means that we no longer follow the order of the music, nor its logic. We find…
Madly You
"Most Americans discover European improvised music using a map dominated by Amsterdam, Berlin, and London, which dwarfs and shoves the rest of the continent to the margins. At some point, however, even they realize the land lies differently. Yet, extensive exploration is required to correct the proportions, label the tributaries, and overlay the trade routes. In this endeavor, recordings become the coordinates that begin to flesh out the map's heretofore blank spaces.
Madly You is valuable in th…
Gargorium
A Fou Records production, like a large part of the music of its producer, Jean-Marc Foussat, is a bit of a puzzle.
Haut-Coeur
"Always at the helm, the sound magician Jean-Marc Foussat offers us four new releases from his catalogue. In April 2022 in Le Mans, this champion of combinations between electronics and acoustics brought together Emmanuelle Parrenin on the hurdy-gurdy, a very old instrument that is sometimes considered the ancestor of the synthesizer (!) and Quentin Rollet on the saxophones, an "impossible" trio if ever there was one. Yet these instruments are in perfect harmony, blending and harmonising in the …
Periferia
"Periferia is an ancient greek word which dérives from the verb perifero,i.e, to bear, bring about; Periferoalso means to let someone know or makesomething known to people, therefore to spread and communicate.
Periferia as a specific area is the perimeter of any closed system. But the1ine of letter Фcuts like a sword the circumference of the solid circle. Periferia symbolizes the fact that you are always far from the center, thatyou follow paths which will never bring you towards the center — yo…
L'Aile D'Icare
"Is it the fall of Icarus, whose vertiginous stridulation we hear from the very first notes of this album, to which Jean-Marc Foussat once again mixes his AKS synth and his voice? A sharp whistle has just pierced the atmosphere and is lost in the urban bustle where the police sirens can easily be distinguished. It is with this scene worthy of a Michael Mann or Christopher Nolan film that this trio recording opens, bringing together saxophonist Urs Leimgruber, who has already signed a magnificent…
Cinq Chants d'Athènes
After studying composition at the Marseille Conservatory, Emmanuel Cremer, while writing for the theatre and the cinema, began improvising, notably alongside Barre Phillips, then Raymond Boni, with whom he recorded in 2003 ("Terronès, Suite andalouse", Blue Marge 1007 - with Foussat!), Joe McPhee, Jean-Marc Montera and other musicians from the region. In Athens in 2019, in the middle of the ancient ruins, but in fact in the studio, he recorded five solo pieces, five improvisations undoubtedly we…
Concert à Luz 2009
From Jean-Marc Foussat own Fou Records, comes one of the most striking archival releases of the year, “Concert 2009”, capturing a meeting between the French electroacoustic free improv trio, Marteau Rouge, and Japanese noise giant Keiji Haino. Pushing far beyond expectations of free improvisation, the group weaves blistering passages that incorporate touchstones from prog, punk, metal, noise, and drone, into more intricate movements of dystopian avant-gardism, culminating as a strikingly forward…
Café Oto, London, The 22th Of January 2020
A momentous 2020 concert at London's Cafe OTO, presented in two discs, the 1st with label leader Jean-Marc Foussat in a solo improvisation on synth and voice, the 2nd in a trio with Daunik Lazro on tenor & baritone sax, and Evan Parker on soprano sax, the 2 saxophones weaving and responding to Foussat's remarkable alien soundscapes and vocalization in an immersive extended improvisation.
Nature Still
An immersive record of free improvisation from the French trio of analog synth player Jean-Marc Foussat, trombonist Christiane Bopp, and vocalist Emmanuelle Parrenin, 4 works inspired by a still life painting by Duane Keiser, each an impressive evolution and transmutation of sound in dream-like environments that envelop then surprise its listeners.
Spie(l)gelungen
The EMS Synthi AKS was introduced in 1972 as a portable analog synthesizer, used in many avant rock & electronic settings; on Spielgelungen both Jean-Marc Foussat and Thomas Lehn perform on the Synthi, their adept skills and experience with the instrument in free improv highlight both their incredible creative drive and the flexibility of the AKS.
SololoS
A stunning solo album of improvised violin from Viennese violinist Irene Kepl, showing a great range of style and technique while keeping the music playful and interesting, invoking a quote from Trisha Brown: "Dancing on the edge is the only place to be."
Instants Chavirés
"This disc represents the outcome of an improvised concert from February 2000 featuring double bassist Peter Kowald, saxophonist Daunik Lazro, together with the voice of Annick Nozati. Having had to resort once more to Google Translate I apologise in advance for misunderstandings and mistranslations. Comparing the French to Google’s English I can recognise the correctness of it but suspect that the nuances of language have been overlooked. The liner notes start with Nozati saying that she does n…
Les Vraies Richesses
Two concerts by improvising keyboardist and vocalist Jean-Marc Foussat, on the LP a recording at the Tout Rennes S'Emmerde event organized by From Town to Town, Capital Taboule, Consternation, L'Effroyable Association Western Soviets Satanist and Dream'in Noise, the 2nd a DVD of Foussat performing live on the beach as part of the 13th Farniente Festival.
Nouvelles
A vinyl reissue of improvising synth, vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Jean-Marc Foussat's 2001 Potlatch album, originally released as a CD-ROM and here with an accompanying DVD titled "Hope for Happiness" including 3 silent films, two of which relate to the album; performed with Francesco Pastorelli : voice, Louise Foussat : laughs, Marc Bohy : drums, Pascal Bouscailloux : bass, Jac Berrocal : trumpet, Jean-François Pauvros : guitars, Roger Turner : voice