NAVIGATOR OF SILENCES | THE REHEARSAL STUDIO - REVIEW

Violin-Piano Recital Album with Latin Overtones

by: Stephen Smoliar | October, 2024

After a relatively modest delay, Rezurrection Records has released an engaging Latin-influenced duo album of violinist Francesca Anderegg accompanied by Brazilian pianist Erika Ribeiro. The title of the album is Navigator of Silences, which is also the title of one of the tracks. “Navegado de Silêncios” was originally composed by the piano duo of Bianca Gismonti and Salomão Soares, and it was arranged jointly by Anderegg and Ribeiro.

This is one of those albums consisting of tracks with one foot firmly planned in the classical genre and the other in jazz with a decidedly Latin bias. As might be guessed, the classical side is established through two three-movement compositions by Radamés Gnattali and Andre Mehman, respectively. Gnattali was a leading Brazilian composer during the twentieth century; and, unlike Heitor Villa-Lobos, his compositions would subsequently influence Antônio Carlos Jobim. Mehman, on the other hand, is contemporary, having established his reputation during the Nineties.

It is also worth noting that Gismonti is the daughter of the famous Brazilian composer Egberto Gismonti, and her duo skills may well have been informed by the influences of her father. The same may be said for her composing skills, since she is responsible for two of the tracks on Navigator of Silences. In that respect, she is in good company with Clarice Assad, the composer I know best on this album, since her track, “The Last Song” can also be found on Relíquia, her duo album with her guitarist father Sergio. In addition, there are two tracks composed by the Brazilian flautist Léa Freire.

In this context it goes without saying that every selection on Navigator of Silences establishes both its own technique and its own rhetorical stance. As a result, Anderegg and Ribeiro bring consistently keen interpretation to the selections, whether they have been composed or arranged. I have now listened to this album several times to get to know all of the tracks, and I look forward to subsequent encounters.