(Contemporary Jazz, Classical Crossover, ACT Music) radio.string.quartet.vienna - Radiodream - 2011, WEB, FLAC (tracks), lossless

It’s difficult to live in Vienna without encountering Sigmund Freud at some point. radio.string.quartet.vienna have also been influenced by the famous psychoanalyst as showcased on their latest album, radiodream, a musical expedition through the realm of our dreams from the most innovative contemporary string quartet around.
“What would a whole night of dreams sound like?” This is how violinist and composer Bernie Mallinger summed up the starting point for the dream project - a night full of hidden feelings and desires, fantasies and nightmares. And the next question: “Can we find a language for all these scenarios?” Radiodream is an imaginary journey with 14 very different stops. “The music gets its emotional strength from the different layers of the subconscious, which is very similar to the process of dreaming,” explains cellist Asja Valcic. “Alongside the images in our minds, for example dreams of love, or fears, there were also many other sources of inspiration. These included an artwork by Salvador Dali, a film or perhaps also a piece of music,” continued Asja Valcic.
The dream journey begins with a restless as well as powerful overture called “Inception”, in reference to the mystery cinema thriller of the same name. The piece leads the way into an eclectic cosmos in which timbres are permanently changing, pieces fuse smoothly into one another and the listener is captured somewhere between total turbulence and being deeply moved. This includes the melancholic “One Night in Vienna” (Valcic) as well as the unsettling “Saint Paul`s Nightmare” (Mallinger). The gently interpreted “Liebestraum” by Franz Liszt also has a place here as does the Hollywood evergreen “Moon River” by Henry Mancini – the version here manages to draw out a totally new appeal from the classic. The arrangement of Radiohead’s “Nice Dream” goes smoothly into Billie Holiday’s legendary blues lament “Strange Fruit”. “From the innocent sounds of a children’s song to the deepest depths of despair – such a rapid transition from one dream world to the next is only possible in music, and this is what was so appealing during the intense rehearsals,” says Mallinger. “Song - Ode an den Freud” is, at nine minutes, not only the longest piece on the album but also a reflection of the outstanding ensemble playing of Bernie Mallinger (violin), Cynthia Liao (viola), Igmar Jenner (violin) and Asja Valcic (cello). All four begin with a theme which is characteristic of their instrument before the piece as a whole condenses to an irresistible melodic maelstrom. “This is, if you like, our great dream – we want to fuse to one whole body of sound,” continues Mallinger.
In this way, r.s.q.v. has already managed to achieve something remarkable. The album “Celebrating the Mahavishnu Orchestra” (2007) with which the quartet announced its label debut with ACT, was celebrated by the critics as well as the live audience as a musical sensation. “Here jazz is given precision and depth through the classical concept without losing any swing,” wrote the “Süddeutsche Zeitung” newspaper about the vital new interpretations of the fusion sounds of the ‘70s. The quartet’s music breaks down all typical genre boundaries. After the grooving, powerful Mahavishnu sounds, the experimental-loving Viennese consistently broadened their palette of expression with each one of their projects. With guitarist Ulf Wakenius they developed beautiful interpretations of pieces by the deceased Swedish pianist Esbjörn Svensson (“Love Is Real”). With accordionist Klaus Paier, more traditional folk elements (“Radiotree”) were featured alongside more jazzy arrangements. Finally, r.s.q.v. and Swedish singer Rigmor Gustafsson proved that love songs, brilliance from the strings and vocal jazz can forge new and exciting connections (“Calling You”).
The protagonists of the new Viennese school of string players, all renowned classical musicians, are united by one thing in particular: a passion for new sounds. They have adapted the absolute ideals of freedom within jazz although from a stylistic viewpoint their horizon is much broader. Bernie Mallinger says: “In some pieces we are actually much closer to pop or rock. And if something sounds good, you can do anything.” r.s.q.v.’s own, typical sound is based on an impressive rhythmic diversity. The musicians not only play the strings but also assume the part of the drums or the bass – plucking, beating, their sound full of percussive finesse. “It’s a bit like lighting, with different degrees of lightness or intensity,” emphasises Valcic, “and this is then pooled in the group process.” This also played a role in the quartet’s choice of name, as the word “radio” stems from the Latin “radius” (= ray).
Incidentally, none of the musicians were actually born in Vienna although Bernie Mallinger and Ingmar Jenner (both from Carinthia), Cynthia Liao (Taiwan) and Asja Valcic (Croatia) all feel very closely connected to the city – the cultural intersection point between East, West and the Balkans. Mallinger states that “Vienna really is a dream city for us – the great musical tradition, its colourfulness, the melancholy but also a light-heartedness. All this inspires us and also has a great deal to do with our music.” It clearly also has a lot to do with the new album “radiodream”, and despite its subject matter there’s no danger of falling asleep when listening to the interpretations of these four astonishing crossover players.

2012 is the 20th-anniversary year of ACT Records, the adventurous German label, founded by former Warner exec Siggi Loch, that introduced the late Esbjörn Svensson to the world. It now supports cutting-edge mavericks such as pianists Vijay Iyer, Michael Wollny and Leszek Mozdzer, and east-west guitar fusioneer Nguyên Lê. The radio.string.quartet.vienna (they intend the punctuation) made its international mark in 2007 with a thrilling traditional-strings interpretation of the Mahavishnu Orchestra's electric fusion music. This set unleashes plenty of the drum-like rhythmic drive they displayed then, but couples it with delicate and spooky melodies on a trip through turbulent dreamland, taken in honour of Sigmund Freud. It includes powerful original themes, such as the initially graceful then riff-heavy Ode an den Freud; the nightmarish Traffic to the Dolphin; and the adrenaline-fuelled Streets (in which versatile cellist Asja Valcic demonstrates her skilful bass-mimicry). They mingle with an eerie treatment of Radiohead's Nice Dream; Strange Fruit reinvented as a softly-whooping chordal melody over a dark drone; a wistful Moon River with an unexpectedly jazzy violin resolution; and a memorable finale inspired by Keith Jarrett's fragile, 1998 version of I Loves You Porgy. It's a timely miniature masterpiece for ACT's 20th birthday.
5 stars! ~ John Fordham

Ah, a string quartet. Calm, gentle—if rather derivative—music may well await. But there's a short verse on the inside cover of radiodream, the closing line of which serves as a fair warning about much of the music that actually awaits: "you can only escape while you are awake." radio.string.quartet.vienna is a band that not only wishes to play with the basic rules of grammar and punctuation; it also wants to play with the imagery of dreams and, for much of the time on this album, it's the visions from the darker realms of sleep that are the band's subject matter. A string quartet it may well be, but there is nothing derivative here, and for every calm and gentle moment there is one of mystery and even fear.
radio.string.quartet.vienna's previous ACT Music releases include covers of John McLaughlin's work (on 2007's Celebrating The Mahavishnu Orchestra) and collaborations with Swedish singer Rigmor Gustaffson on 2010's Calling You and Austrian accordionist Klaus Paier on Radiotree (2008). But this is a band determined to develop and take chances, and familiarity with its previous releases will give little insight into the music on radiodream.
The quartet creates an ethereal, otherworldly mood with its traditional lineup of two violins, viola and cello. Occasional vocals from violinist/main writer Bernie Mallinger and transistor radio noise add to the strangeness of this atmosphere. The musicians are capable of threatening power and nightmarish, dystopian imagery. Mallinger's "Traffic To The Dolphin" sweeps effortlessly between the two; his "Saint Paul's Nightmare" is indeed nightmarish; and the quartet's take on "Strange Fruit" is barely recognizable, yet still portrays the horror of Lewis Allen's original poem. Even Henry Mancini's delightful "Moon River" is somehow discomforting, although it stays close to the familiar melody.
Given the often nightmarish soundscapes of radiodream, the inclusion of Radiohead's "Nice Dream" might be seen as ironic. But radio.string.quartet.vienna proves to be eminently capable of balancing light and dark, it's just not easy to predict when the band will shift between the two. Mallinger's "Streets..." is brief but beautiful, while cellist Asja Valcic's "One Night In Vienna" has a majestic grace that serves to showcase the quartet's power and virtuosity. "I Loves You, Porgy" is lovely, but heartbreakingly so.
radiodream may not always be a comfortable listening experience, but it is always a fascinating one, as radio.string.quartet.vienna moves the string quartet into exciting new places. ~ Bruce Lindsay