* Regular edition of 350 copies * From the vaults of Romanian contemporary music emerges Match / Soliloque 1&4 / Antifonia, a reissue that spotlights the singular vision of Nicolae Brînduş. Originally unveiled in 1986 as part of the Electrecord RCM series, these works trace back to Brînduş’s formative PHTORA cycle (1968-1972), a sequence of five compositions each embodying a distinct level of collective improvisational structure, all leaning in the spectralist tradition. The album is renowned as the most eccentric entry within the series—an audacious blend of organized cacophony, folkloric resonance, and improvisational risk.

On these pieces, Brînduş orchestrates a whirlwind of abstract orchestral forms that never tip into chaos for chaos’s sake; rather, they embody a sense of meticulous layering where Romanian picturesque motifs are refracted through the prism of free jazz and the shattering energy of tape manipulation. The result is both massive and delicate, a controlled explosion of sound and concept. Tape editing and reverberation enrich the listening experience, propelling the album into realms where folklore and avant-garde meet in spectral dialogue.

This reissue faithfully preserves the original artwork by Ana Golici, a visual artist whose sleeve designs for Electrecord have become emblematic of a distinct era in Romanian music. Golici’s aesthetic sensibility mirrors Brînduş’s sonic ambition; her vivid visual language provides an apt frame for music that resists easy categorization. Here, sound and image are interwoven, each enhancing the impact of the other.

Match / Soliloque 1&4 / Antifonia is crucial listening for anyone intrigued by the intersections of improvisation, folk heritage, and experimental technique. Brînduş’s legacy reverberates not only through Romanian music history but also across the wider landscape of avant-garde composition, where the balance of intuition and structure continues to captivate. In channeling a period rich in artistic crosscurrents and creative boldness, this reissue underlines just how advanced and unconventional Brînduş’s work truly remains.