Bruno Spoerri

Swiss composer Bruno Spoerri, in conjunction with long term collaborators Finders Keepers, finally unleashes the master tapes to an obscure 1972 feature length documentary called Langstrasse Zwischen 12 und 12 (Long Street Between Midday And Midnight). Directed by Gianni Paggi (who had also worked on Swiss pop music weekly Hits A Gogo) and radio host and author Max Rüeger this seldom seen film studied the stark counter balance between the lifestyles of the inhabitants of Zurich's famous Langstrasse, exploring real-life stories. To accentuate the ironic and slightly schizophrenic nature of the production Paggi and Rüeger called upon Spoerri as one of the country's most versatile instrumental composers to share a first-hand impression of the area as a local himself. Exploring a wide range of musical disciplines, Spoerri successfully infused vibrant bursts of sonic color into the monochrome imagery of the program, creating a floating narrative undercurrent quite unlike anything heard on regular Swiss TV during the era. In scoring such a project to a precise deadline Spoerri would require a trusted group of regular musicians, many of whom would appear on collectable records by Swiss groups such as The Metronome Quintet, The Rainbow Orchestra and Emphasis. As a leader of The Metronome Quintet himself Bruno was comfortable working alongside reliable members Fernando Vicencio (sax and flute), Ueli Staub (vibes, keys and percussion) and drummer Rolf Bänninger. Other players on this session include Latin multi-instrumentalist Antonio Conde, pianist Renato Anselmi and trumpeter Franco Ambrosetti. The final icing on the cake for this session would be the inclusion of Switzerland's leading harmonica player Heinz Pfenninger, a welcome addition to the group having played with Ueli Staub in the award-winning Roby Weber Quartet. Langstrasse Zwischen 12 und 12 sees Spoerri explore unique new territories, combining the skill of incredibly talented musicians and combining his own discoveries in the realms of electronic music and his own brand of post-concrète found sound application which would appear on his rare postcard records made for industrial companies utilising wristwatches, pneumatic drills and forklift trucks as essential parts of his orchestral palette. This early '70s glimpse into Spoerri's narrative composition for the small screen captures an important European artist-cum-scientist treading a seldom trodden path between experimental pop, jazz and music technology in its infancy.