Alex Cline - Montsalvat (Nine Winds, 1992)

Alex Cline, percussion, kantele
Wayne Peet, keyboards, bells
Jeff Gauthier, violin, bells
Aina Kemanis, voice, bells
Eric Von Essen, bass, cello, bells

Recorded May 25 & 26, 1992

Group IV, Hollywood CA

Engineer: Geoff Sykes

Beginning in 1987, Alex Cline released a series of 8 recordings that his twin brother Nels describes as "monastic." (See the link below for the source of Nels' description.) Albums in the series have an otherworldly spiritual vibe, performed by a core set of players from the Nine Winds and Cryptogramophone labels. The most compelling of these records is For People in Sorrow (Cryptogramophone, 2013), which includes a DVD of the recorded performance. The other albums in the series are tamer but equally profound. 

Montsalvat's cover art pictures a clouded mountain peak, vaguely suggesting a devotional theme although no particular religious influence is referenced. Cline's percussion kit includes multiple gongs and with the whole band doubling on bells, it's easy to imagine a Tibetan sanctuary nestled in the mountain side. The music is cinematic in this respect. 

Among the featured musicians, Aina Kemanis' angelic vocals stand out. Often wordless, as if drawn from some forgotten ancient language, her lyrics add to the unfolding mystery. She is positioned as equal to the keyboards and violin, while the bass and percussion provide a restlessly shifting presence. 

Cline's percussion work establishes the structure of each composition. I would love to see the sheet music for his compositions if it happens to exist (which I doubt). Given the organic, improvised nature of the music, I would expect to see only minimal structures in which dramatic crescendos and meditative drones are signaled. (The video performance of People in Sorrow is paced by cards held up to signal transitions. That method seems sensible to sustain the minimal structure of the music.) 

Regardless of the timing and numbers of scripted sections, it all flows like clouds or waves, prompting listeners' imaginations. I personally get a lot of emotional mileage from Cline's series of cinematic albums. 

Other albums in the series are:

The Lamp and the Star (ECM, 1987)

Sparks Fly Upward (Cryptogramophone, 1998)

The Constant Flame (Cryptogramophone, 2000)

The Other Shore (Cryptogramophone, 2000)

Cloud Plate (Cryptogramophone, 2005)

Continuation (Cryptogramophone, 2009)

For People in Sorrow (Cryptogramophone, 2013)

To see my post on the first album in Cline's series, go to:

 Post: Edit The Lamp and the Star