The MusikCircus in Twelve Tones - Updated with RL Pic of Joaquin

Risot Rolna is in Hungary and he makes experimental electronic music.  He came to Cat's Art MusikCircus last night for, I believe, the first time and gave an extraordinary show.

The first thought with electronic music is probably Techno but that isn't it at all.  Risot Rolna is highly explorative in his music but not so much so as to make it unapproachable.  At times he will use a hard beat and at others a delicate piano line to grab your focus and then be off again to another world.  Risot's music is transporting but not by slipping into dreams, instead it is thoughtful and fascinating.  He delves into minimalism and also hypnotic riffs.  How those two can be compatible is something you can only discover by listening to him.

His work is immediately reminiscent but not at all derivative of John Cage.

If you want to explore experimental music further, you can read about the chromatic scale (i.e. twelve-tone scale) on Wiki.  The music most familiar to you is made up of diatonic scales which use seven of the twelve tones and these are the musical keys.  What makes the chromatic scale fascinating to experimental musicians is that diatonic scales don't use five of the twelve tones so this gives tremendous scope for exploration.

You can follow Risot Rolna on Twitter, SoundCloud, and ReverbNation.

Here's a sample from a video on YouTube:

There were two shows last night and Joaquin Gustav played the second.

While there was the delicate romance of Joaquin Gustav's style of play, it was a quite different set and I'm sure it will depart yet again once his new guitar arrives.  He has announced it on Facebook so it's no longer a secret that he is awaiting a Godin jazz guitar.  He sounded very happy in his set last night and I can't even imagine how happy he will be when the new guitar arrives.

It's always an amazement to me that Joaquin can play so fast while still giving an impression of extraordinary delicacy.  Someone shredding an electric guitar is no faster but there's a harshness to that technique whereas there is none at all in the way Joaquin plays.  I said to Cat at the time that I do not at all believe that anyone can play with that delicacy unless he has the same gentle spirit in his heart.

Update:  Here's a pic of Joaquin with a nylon string Godin and he's waiting for delivery of yet another Godin.

CRI Bluestar was dancing for most of the show but her partner had to leave and she found herself a comfortable place on the Moon to take in the rest of the music.  That's how Joaquin's music will affect you.

Joaquin makes that kind of music.  You either want to dance with someone you love or listen thoughtfully and Joaquin doesn't play in the same style as Risot but his music is transporting in its own way.


And of course it transports Cat and I too

Yevette Nishi was there and she didn't think transporting my hair to grey was such a good idea but if Cat likes it then that's all I need to know!