''Fleuve'' is the second album credited to the

Pierre Favre Peter Faber (french: Pierre Lefevre or Favre, la, Petrus Faver) (13 April 1506 – 1 August 1546) was a Jesuit priest and theologian, who was also a co-founder of the Society of Jesus, along with Ignatius of Loyola and Francis Xavier. Pope Fra ...

Ensemble, recorded in Switzerland in October 2005 and released on ECM October the following year—twenty two years after the ensemble's 1984 debut,

Singing Drums ''Singing Drums'' is an album by percussionist Pierre Favre (musician), Pierre Favre recorded in 1984 and released on the ECM Records, ECM label.serpent Serpent or The Serpent may refer to: * Snake, a carnivorous reptile of the suborder Serpentes Mythology and religion * Sea serpent, a monstrous ocean creature * Serpent (symbolism), the snake in religious rites and mythological contexts * Serp ...

—an instrument rarely used in jazz. The music has a deep bottom end due to the low-end instruments, but Favre keeps a light texture, partly due to the low instruments being played in their highest registers and arrangements which highlight different instruments. The album was influenced by Renaissance music and baroque music. Favre maintains a melodic sound which doesn't dominate over other instruments. Music critics praised ''Fleuve''.

Background and recording

As a drummer, Favre built a career as one of jazz's most respected percussionists. His work has become defined by a lack of boundaries, working in styles such as

free jazz Free jazz is an experimental approach to jazz improvisation that developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s when musicians attempted to change or break down jazz conventions, such as regular tempos, tones, and chord changes. Musicians during ...

, world music, and

contemporary classical music Contemporary classical music is classical music composed close to the present day. At the beginning of the 21st century, it commonly referred to the post-1945 modern forms of post-tonal music after the death of Anton Webern, and included seria ...

. For ECM he has contributed to many albums, including

John Surman John Douglas Surman (born 30 August 1944) is an English jazz saxophone, bass clarinet, and synthesizer player, and composer of free jazz and modal jazz, often using themes from folk music. He has composed and performed music for dance performanc ...

's ''

Such Winters of Memory ''Such Winters of Memory'' is an album by English saxophonist John Surman recorded in 1982 and released on the ECM label.Dino Saluzzi Timoteo "Dino" Saluzzi (born 20 May 1935) is an Argentinian bandoneon player. He is the son of Cayetano Saluzzi and the father of guitarist José Maria Saluzzi. Early life, family and education Timoteo "Dino" Saluzzi was born in Campo Santo, ...

's '' Once Upon a Time - Far Away in the South'' (1986) and

Paul Giger Paul Giger (born 1952 in Herisau, Switzerland), is a Swiss violinist and composer. He plays contemporary classical music, jazz, and free improvised music, and specializes in extended techniques. He has released six CDs on the ECM label and co ...

's ''

Alpstein The Alpstein are a subgroup of the Appenzell Alps in Switzerland. The Alpstein massif is in Appenzell Innerrhoden, Appenzell Ausserrhoden and St. Gallen. Despite it being rather low when compared to other Alpine peaks – the highest mountain i ...

'' (1991). Favre's first album as leader for ECM was ''

Singing Drums ''Singing Drums'' is an album by percussionist Pierre Favre (musician), Pierre Favre recorded in 1984 and released on the ECM Records, ECM label. an all-percussion recording and the first album by the Pierre Favre Ensemble, at the time consisting of Favre,

Paul Motian Stephen Paul Motian (March 25, 1931 – November 22, 2011) was an American jazz drummer, percussionist, and composer. Motian played an important role in freeing jazz drummers from strict time-keeping duties. He first came to prominence in the l ...

Fredy Studer Fredy Studer (16 June 1948 – 22 August 2022) was a Swiss drummer and percussionist. Biography Fredy Studer was born in Lucerne, Switzerland on 16 June 1948. In 1972, he founded the jazz fusion quartet OM, with guitarist Christy Doran, sa ...

, and

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. ''Singing Drums'' established his "fertile relationship" with ECM. Although the album inspired Favre's Singing Drums ensemble, which recorded the album ''Souffles'' (1998) for Swiss label

Intakt Records Intakt Records is an independent record label, based in Zürich. History The label was founded in 1986 by Patrik Landolt.Margasak, Peter (September 2013) "Intakt's Landolt Takes Long-Term Approach to Avant-Garde". ''Down Beat''. p. 16. In the ea ...

, he did not record another album with the ensemble until ''Fleuve''. ''Fleuve'' is Favre's first album for ECM in over a decade, his final up until that point being ''Window Steps'' (1995). It is a return for the Pierre Favre Ensemble, now containing a new line-up of Favre on percussion and drums, Wolfgang Zwiauer on bass guitar,

Michel Godard Michel Godard is a French avant-garde jazz and classical musician. He plays tuba and the predecessor of the tuba, a brass instrument known as the serpent. Career At 18, Godard was a member of the Philharmonic Orchestra of Radio-France. He has ...

on tuba and

serpent Serpent or The Serpent may refer to: * Snake, a carnivorous reptile of the suborder Serpentes Mythology and religion * Sea serpent, a monstrous ocean creature * Serpent (symbolism), the snake in religious rites and mythological contexts * Serp ...

, Frank Kroll on

bass clarinet The bass clarinet is a musical instrument of the clarinet family. Like the more common soprano B clarinet, it is usually pitched in B (meaning it is a transposing instrument on which a written C sounds as B), but it plays notes an octave bel ...

and soprano saxophone, Philipp Schaufelberger on guitar,

Hélène Breschand Hélène Breschand (born 18 March 1966) is a French harpist, composer and improviser. Breschand leads a career both as a solo artist as well as in ensemble work, playing both a contemporary repertoire and premiering new works as much as she plays ...

on harp, and Bänz Oester on double-bass. This line-up was considered unconventional, with one writer noting that the inclusion of the serpent, a military horn, was particularly unusual for a jazz album. The album was recorded in October 2005 at Volkshaus,

Basel, Switzerland , french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese , neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (BS), ...

, with ECM owner Manfred Eicher producing the recording and with engineering by Daniel Dettweiler. The space in Eicher's production were said by Thom Jurek of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

to provide "an unhurried sense of time's stasis," thus making the album "all the more appealing" in that it slowly brings listeners through the recording. Eicher mixed the album with Favre at Idee Und Klang Studio, Switzerland.

Music

Throughout ''Fleuve'', the ensemble has a naturally deep bottom end, due to Favre's drums, Oëster's double bass, Zwiauer's bass guitar and Godard's tuba and serpent playing, with the middle- to high-end instrumentation courtesy of Schaufelberger's guitar, Kroll's soprano saxophone and bass clarinet and Breschand's harp. Despite featuring very bottom-heavy instrumentation, the music has been noted by critics for its light, airy, ethereal sound. The light texture to the music is largely provided by several characteristics, namely numerous instruments playing concurrently, low instruments often being played in their highest registers, arrangements with shifting instrument focuses at any given time, and the "touch used by the bassists." Budd Kopman of ''

All About Jazz ''All About Jazz'' is a website established by Michael Ricci in 1995. A volunteer staff publishes news, album reviews, articles, videos, and listings of concerts and other events having to do with jazz. Ricci maintains a related site, ''Jazz Near ...

'' writes of the overall sound: Elements of

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...

and

baroque music Baroque music ( or ) refers to the period or dominant style of Western classical music composed from about 1600 to 1750. The Baroque style followed the Renaissance period, and was followed in turn by the Classical period after a short transiti ...

are evident throughout the album's blended musical textures. Barry Witherden of ''

BBC Music Magazine ''BBC Music Magazine'' is a British monthly magazine that focuses primarily on classical music. History The first issue appeared in September 1992. BBC Worldwide, the commercial subsidiary of the BBC was the original owner and publisher toget ...

'' feels it is the bass, drums, guitar and harp which combine to "carry the pulse" against the strong rhythmic backdrop on all seven compositions. Although Favre is the bandleader, he generally keeps to a melodic sound that generally places his drums equal to other instruments in the mix, although he does not forgo the larger rhythmic aspect of the drums, as is evidenced by "Reflet Sud," which "moves inexorably and insistently forward." Regardless, Steve Futterman of ''

Jazz Times ''JazzTimes'' is an American magazine devoted to jazz. Published 10 times a year, it was founded in Washington, D.C. in 1970 by Ira Sabin as the newsletter ''Radio Free Jazz'' to complement his record store. Coverage After a decade of growth ...

'' writes that Favre's "selfless adherence to big-picture equilibrium" means that he rarely feels like the band leader.

Structure

Opening track "Mort d'Eurydice" alludes to Renaissance music and starts with a harp and percussion-based free section. The piece's central section features a bass-set rhythm resembling a heartbeat. "Panama" is the most melodic track, with figures from the harp and double bass accompanied by hand percussion, before giving way to a flash of cymbals announcing a more ethereal section where the guitar approximates a melody. The track contains three solos and ends with a brief, non-sequitur

coda Coda or CODA may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * Movie coda, a post-credits scene * ''Coda'' (1987 film), an Australian horror film about a serial killer, made for television *''Coda'', a 2017 American experimental film from Na ...

. "Reflet Sud" displays the anchoring tuba and serpent balancing the basses, before the guitar work moves the instruments into a middle-range improvisation. "Fire Red-Gas Blue-Ghost Green" is said to be the most ethereal track, which opens with bass guitar and double bass and transforms into a jazz tune containing

Middle Eastern The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Province), East Thrace (European ...

modalities. Writer Andy Kelman writes that the track's "Middle-to-Far Eastern flavor" is countered by its "more expansive landscape" with Schaufelberger's guitar solo and Kroll's bass clarinet solo. A steady bass drum largely supports the other instrumentation throughout "Nile", which features low-end serpent working against the "pinging" harp. Favre's percussion is most emphasised on "Decors," which contains the album's only genuine

drum solo A drum solo is an instrumental solo played on a drum kit. A drum solo may be set or improvised, and of any length, up to being the main performance. In rock, drum solos are unique in that traditionally they are minimally or never accompanied, wher ...

. Futterman felt Favre's "evocative hand-drumming" on the track " reakspast a stately theme." Witherden detected the influence of

Tudor music Early music of Britain and Ireland, from the earliest recorded times until the beginnings of the Baroque in the 17th century, was a diverse and rich culture, including sacred and secular music and ranging from the popular to the elite. Each of the ...

on the piece, while Kopman more broadly wrote that the song creates tension via its constant shift "between Renaissance dance and African

polyrhythm Polyrhythm is the simultaneous use of two or more rhythms that are not readily perceived as deriving from one another, or as simple manifestations of the same meter. The rhythmic layers may be the basis of an entire piece of music (cross-rhyth ...

s."

Release and reception

''Fleuve'' was released on 10 October 2006 by ECM Records. It features a photograph by Jean-Guy Lathuilière on the album cover and further photographs in the liner notes by Ueli Nüesch. The album received positive reviews from music critics. Thom Jurek of

called the album "beautiful" and stated: "''Fleuve'' is an album of gorgeous, flowing textures and sound colors that seduce the listener toward them, bringing them slowly along through the recording".Jurek, T.
Allmusic Review
accessed May 19, 2014 Steve Futterman of ''

'' was largely favourable, saying that "Favre rigorously transforms ''Fleuve'' into a kaleidoscope of surprising musical colors." Though expressing a "niggling complaint" in that Kroll's piping soprano saxophone "can land the quirky group sound back in overly familiar ECM territory," he nonetheless felt the combinations of the other instruments were imaginative and help distinguish the project from other jazz albums. He also felt that Favre's "lean toward scrupulous craft" was perhaps emblematic of his Swiss background. Barry Witherden of ''

'' called ''Fleuve'' one of Favre's "most captivating albums" and wrote that "it is the agreeable melodies and the ingenious, fresh and attractive voicings that distinguish the session." ''

'' correspondent Budd Kopman felt that ''Fleuve'' highlights that Favre not only masters his own instrument but also "has complete command in the fields of composition and arrangement." He felt that the album was "timeless" despite its allusions to Renaissance music on "Mort d'Eurydice" and "Decors," with each track boasting an individual charm, and concluded that "Favre has created music of many layers that exists totally outside of any specific genre. By turns profound, exciting and overtly beautiful, ''Fleuve'' is art of the highest degree". Also writing for ''Just About Jazz'', John Kelman said: "There are those who believe that percussionists don't make compelling composers and/or bandleaders. Favre's small but significant body of work for ECM lays waste to any such claims, with ''Fleuve'' the best argument yet". ''

Les Inrockuptibles ''Les Inrockuptibles'' () is a French cultural magazine. Started as a monthly magazine in 1986, it became weekly in 1995. Now it is a monthly again, since 2021. In the beginning, rock music was the magazine's primary focus, though every issue in ...

'' called ''Fleuve'' a "majestic" album.

Track listing

''All compositions by Pierre Favre'' # "Mort d'Eurydice" – 5:33 # "Panama" – 6:35 # "Albatros" – 7:57 # "Reflet Sud" – 8:03 # "Fire Red – Gas Blue – Ghost Green" – 7:55 # "Nile" – 8:24 # "Decors" – 7:30

Personnel

Pierre Favre Ensemble

* Pierre Favre – drums, percussion * Michel Godard – tuba,

* Frank Kroll – soprano saxophone, bass clarinet * Helene Breschand – harp * Philipp Schaufelberger – guitar * Bänz Oester – double bass * Wolfgang Zwiauer – bass guitar

References

{{Authority control ECM Records albums Pierre Favre (musician) albums 2006 albums Albums produced by Manfred Eicher