Lena, Extended Gestures for Cello (CDR Hypnos Secret Sounds)

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As an artist new to the recording scene, calling yourself simply "Lena" is certainly one way to make sure you don´t stand out in the crowd. I believe there are already a handful of Lenas on the record store shelves; I myself am currently working on a review of the third album by another Lena, the nom-de-reggae of French-Canadian sound artist Mathias Delplanque.

However much she - and this Lena is indeed a she - hides the light of her personality under a bushel, Lena could not be more forthcoming in calling her album Extended Gestures for Cello. For that is exactly what it is - a whopping seventy minutes delving into cello sonorities. A "gesture" is generally understood as a simple, physical movement meant to convey a rather straightforward thought, and over ten tracks ranging from one to almost fifteen minutes, Lena coaxes many exquisite ideas out of her overgrown fiddle while her husband, ambient stalwart M. Griffin, paints a slightly out of focus background with subtle electronic treatments. I particularly like the sense of enormous indoor space they create on "Crowdmurmurs, Peopletalk".

The longest track "Workings of Silver Fortunetellilng Machines" is a masterpiece of patience, as Lena strokes the cello once with her bow, allows the note to sound, carry, get caught up in the discreet electrical storm surrounding it in space, and diminish before taking another swipe at the instrument. Probably one of the most meticulously created and intellectually enjoyable ambient tracks I´ve heard this year.

Not every single one of these "gestures" succeeds, but if Lena continues to carve out a career as ambient cellist, it will be interesting to see where her skill and imagination take her.

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