(2022) Bruno Bavota & Chantal Acda - A Closer Distance    


Review:
The title of the collaborative debut album from Italian pianist Bruno Bavota and Dutch singer Chantal Acda references proximity, a natural choice considering that, like many a long-distance recording created during the pandemic, the two crafted the recording without ever being in the same room. What makes the fact all the more striking is that the intimacy achieved in the performances makes it seem as if they sat side by side during the recording process. Their intertwining on “Still I” is so close, for example, it’s almost impossible to listen to the song and not picture the two sharing a piano bench, with Bavota supporting her tremulous voice with the sparsest of chords. The physical distance separating them didn’t prevent the two from generating a powerful magic in the material. Interestingly, the project was originally conceived to be a two- or three-song EP, but once they began the material developed into a full, nine-song statement, though still a modest one at thirty minutes. As always with Bavota’s recordings, the piano exudes a dusty, shop-worn quality and sounds as if the microphone’s been placed as close to the keys as possible. Acda has one of those instantly identifiable voices, one generally delivered at a hush and marked by a quiver. The stripped-down arrangements Bavota favours for his pastoral, folk-ambient compositions—often nothing more than piano—enhance the impact of her singing in allowing every subtle nuance to be heard. As is often the case with a singer possessing an entrancing vocal style, one’s attention often drifts from the content of the lyrics to the way they’re embodied. Adding to the mesmerizing quality of her voice, Acda typically augments the lead with layers, sometimes expanding the lead into a mini-choir and elsewhere fashioning counterpoint. Particularly intoxicating is “Sirens” for its swooning lilt, the ache in Acda’s dramatic delivery, and an arrangement built around acoustic guitar strums and piano. It’s hardly the only memorable setting, however, with “Slowmotion,” “Lullaby For Loved Ones,” “Everything Collides,” and the ultra-ethereal “Days Like These” as potent. Each artist clearly benefits from the partnership when their sensibilities align so closely. Her vocal presence adds an enticing new dimension to his piano-based instrumental music; his inclination to melancholy provides a rich ground for her fragile expression. Put simply, both bring out the best in each other, the collaboration seeming in hindsight like the most natural and inevitable of convergences. — Textura


   


Track List:
01 - Connecting Dots
02 - Sirens
03 - Still I
04 - Closeness
05 - Slowmotion
06 - Days Like These
07 - Her Eyes
08 - Lullaby for Loved Ones
09 - Everything Collides


Media Report:
Genre: alternative folk, ambient
Country: Netherlands/Italy
Format: FLAC
Format/Info: Free Lossless Audio Codec
Bit rate mode: Variable
Channel(s): 2 channels
Sampling rate: 44.1 KHz
Bit depth: 16 bits
Compression mode: Lossless
Writing library: libFLAC 1.2.1 (UTC 2007-09-17)


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