Rodelberg
29 May 2023 at 18:40
An EMERGENCE from stagnation began in Arkhangelsk – the Northern Russian port city that lends the legendary free jazz group born there its name. On 25 May 1979, within the political and cultural climate of a dawning Perestroika, this group made a special appearance in Moers. Neither the prefrontal cortex nor our archive was able to prove conclusively whether Oleg Yudanov was also present for that outing. "In a hidden, wildly craggy cliff-lined bay lies Odysseus, the famous hero and destroyer of Troy, with his fleet at anchor." He wanted to return – in a radically altered climate. Now he is sending us the spearhead of the Russian avant-garde in the form of saxophonist and multi-instrumentalist Alexey Kruglow, pianist and singer Karina Kozhevnikova and timeless, nimble-sticked skintamer Petr Talalai. "The day is dawning – Odysseus rests, half-dozing." It is winter in Arkhangelsk – difficult to free oneself there, preoccupied by the composed, improvised, folkloristic and academic. Yudanov won't be in Moers. "He doesn't recognise his homeland, however, and his gaze roams uncontented."
