''Summvs'' is the fifth collaboration album between

Alva Noto Carsten Nicolai (18 September 1965), also known as Alva Noto, is a German musician and visual artist. He is a member of the music groups Diamond Version with Olaf Bender (Byetone), Signal with Frank Bretschneider and Olaf Bender, Cyclo with Ryoj ...

and

Ryuichi Sakamoto is a Japanese composer, pianist, singer, record producer and actor who has pursued a diverse range of styles as a solo artist and as a member of Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO). With his bandmates Haruomi Hosono and Yukihiro Takahashi, Sakamoto i ...

. The record was released on 9 May 2011 via Raster-Noton label.

Background

The collaboration between the artists began in 2002, and ''Summvs'' promises to be the fifth and final installment in the series titled the ''Virus Series''. The title ''Summvs'' refers to the Latin word "summa" (eng. sum) and "versus" (eng. towards); it serves as a metaphor for the work being oriented towards a collaborative result. The album features "Microon" compositions containing recordings of a 16th tone interval tuning piano—''Piano Metamorfoseador Carrillo en Dieciseisavos de Tono''. The album also features two covers of the track "By This River" originally composed by Brian Eno,

Dieter Moebius Dieter Moebius (16 January 1944 – 20 July 2015) was a Swiss-born German electronic musician and composer, best known as a member of the influential krautrock bands Cluster and Harmonia. Moebius was studying art at Berlin's Akademie Grafik and ...

, and

Hans-Joachim Roedelius Hans-Joachim Roedelius (born 26 October 1934) is a German electronic musician and composer, best known as a co-founder of the influential 'kosmische' groups Cluster and Harmonia. He also performed in the ambient jazz trio Aquarello, and relea ...

in 1977. The initial letters of the five albums in the series—''

Vrioon ''Vrioon'' is the debut collaboration album between Ryuichi Sakamoto and Alva Noto, released in 2002. This is the first album in the ''Virus Series'' followed by four other records: '' Insen'' (2005), '' Revep'' (2006), '' utp_'' (2008), and '' Su ...

'' (2002), '' Insen'' (2005), ''

Revep ''Revep'' is the third collaboration record between Japanese composer Ryuichi Sakamoto and German electronic artist Carsten Nicolai (here credited as Alva Noto). This EP continues the series titled the ''Virus Series''. The EP was released on 23 ...

'' (2006), '' utp_'' (2008), and ''Summvs'' (2011)—together form the word "Virus".

Reception

Mark Jarnes of ''

The Japan Times ''The Japan Times'' is Japan's largest and oldest English-language daily newspaper. It is published by , a subsidiary of News2u Holdings, Inc.. It is headquartered in the in Kioicho, Chiyoda, Tokyo. History ''The Japan Times'' was launched b ...

'' commented "Sakamoto’s haunting piano-based arrangements — as well as his masterful understanding of silence — effortlessly coalesce with Nicolai’s digital rhythms and accompaniment, creating a work of musical art that is as provocative as it is meditative. OK, so technically because this album was pressed by German label Raster-Noton, it’s not strictly a Japanese release. However, Sakamoto’s contribution makes it a significant step forward for Japan’s avant-garde scene — not just musically, but also artistically".

Track listing

Personnel

*Grand Piano – Ryuichi Sakamoto *Music – Alva Noto (tracks: 1 to 6, 8, 9), Ryuichi Sakamoto (tracks: 1 to 6, 8, 9) *Piano – Conrad Hensel, Fernando Aponte, Yoshifumi Iio

References

External links

Review by ''Dusted Magazine''
{{Authority control 2011 albums Alva Noto albums Ryuichi Sakamoto albums Collaborative albums Raster-Noton albums