Artista eclettico (oltre che musicista pare che sia anche attore), Damian Nisenson è un sassofonista di origini argentine che, prima del suo arrivo a Montréal, ha vissuto e studiato musica in Europa dal 1977 al 1984. La sua discografia, completa di collaborazioni, conta già sei uscite di cui due come solista/leader. In effetti l’ambiente creativo in cui il poliedrico fiatista pare muoversi con più famigliarità è il trio: da qui il suo esordio come titolare in Muzika del 2006 accompagnato dal contrabbasso di Jean Félix Mailloux e dalle percussioni del ben noto Pierre Tanguay. Quella di Nisenson è una musica molto sanguigna e ritmica che trae dalle radici etniche (sospese tra il gitano e il klezmer) la sua linfa vitale avvicinandosi in questo a quella miriade di progetti “new klezmer” gravitanti attorno ad un altro musicista inafferrabile che, come Damian, ha sviluppato un fiatismo borderline e radicale, vale a dire John Zorn. Di grande impatto emotivo Supper’s Ready (niente a che fare con quella di genesisiana memoria) dove il nostro spinge le sonorità dei suoi sax a livelli assai contigui all’africanità di un Archie Shepp così come il quieto respiro di Paspire dove il suo tenore fraseggia con i piatti di Tanguay e il basso “archettato” di Mailloux.

Sulla stessa frequenza il live del 2008 che vede il Nostro allargare i propri orizzonti creativi aprendo il proprio trio alle percussioni di Ziya Tabassian, la fisarmonica di Luzio Altobelli e il bandoneon di Denis Plante conferendo al tutto tonalità ancor più marcatemene etniche. Molto d’impatto l’inaugurale Drose Dubke (già presente nel lavoro precedente) con il sopranino del leader in ottima evidenza così come l’inedita Piegrande dai toni gitano-klezmer parecchio marcati grazie anche alle timbriche delle tastiere. Stessa atmosfera (ma ancor più danzereccia e quasi tribale) in Chanson de q che si va a sciogliere nelle note dilatati e quasi dolenti di Tempo (presente anch’essa in Muzika). La sommessa tensione di Hora (dopo i begli episodi di Paspire, Ninguneo, Supper’s Ready e Chanson de rue #6) conclude nei migliori dei modi questa seconda, notevole, prova del musicista argentino.

Compositore, sassofonista e attore, l’argentino Nisenson è vissuto a lungo in Europa prima di trasferirsi in Québec qualche anno fa. La comunità musicale di Montréal ha accolto con favore la sua estroversione, il suo calarsi sempre festoso e scenografico nella musica, dandogli anche l’occasione di registrare questo Cd per una nuova etichetta che si affianca, nell’ambito Dame, alla più nota Ambiances Magnétiques. Un contrabbassista inappuntabile come Jean Félix Mailloux e il batterista Pierre Tanguay accompagnano il tenore, il contralto e il sopranino di Nisenson in dieci brani fortemente aromatizzati da un folclore latino-balcanico e smussati da forti semplificazioni ritmiche.

Au Québec, s’activent toujours les trublions d’Ambiances Magnétiques. Au Québec, Damian Nisenson, saxophoniste argentin vient de créer le label Malasartes. Au Québec, voici que nous arrive le label Tour de Bras… De l’impro de chambre au noise, petite visite guidée.

Le jazz klezmer bouge encore, Damian Nisenson nous le prouvant ici, souvent avec talent. Saxophoniste argentin, installé au Québec, il réinvestit l’espace klezmer en douze thèmes d’inégales intensités.

Au saxophoniste, on reconnaîtra un sens certain des dérapages incontrôlables, un son épais au ténor, virevoltant au sopranino et un désir de très vite convulser dans un illogisme remarquable et rageur. Le garçon possède un bel appétit et un sens du double looping qui ne peut laisser indifférent.

Mal servie par une prise de son trop modeste, la rythmique joue trop dans le systématisme obligé du jazz klezmer, malgré quelques jolis débordements impulsés par le toujours tranchant Pierre Tanguay.

Un disque en demi-teintes. A suivre néanmoins…

Looking for a definition of musique actuelle? How about taking it from this CD of emotive Tango and Klezmer-inflected Free Music played by an expatriate Argentinean and two Québécois?

The emotive tone of this notable disc is set by former South American native and European traveler Damian Nisenson, who plays sopranino, alto and tenor saxophones here and composed all the tunes save one traditional melody. Still, its precise shape is assured by Pierre Tanguay’s robust but perceptive drumming and the controlled potency of Jean Félix Mailloux’s pizzicato bass work.

Although joyous freylach–like melodies are evident throughout, overall the tunes are played with an underlying catch-in-the-throat sadness. A constricted gullet doesn’t stop Nisenson from honking, double- tonguing or pitch vibrating. Yet even the sing-song Klezmer clarinet channeling in his piercing sopranino solos buttress the compositions’ nomadic allusions.

Paspire, for instance may have a funky bass line and Nikadance a four-square drum backbeat. But on the former Nisenson’s serpentine, vibrating tongue stops references a Middle Eastern ney and on the later murmuring wide intervals and altissimo reed runs relate to Eastern European country dances. Paspire climaxes with double counterpoint from the plucked bass and vibrating slurs from the tenor, while the other piece’s side-slipping tongue slurs make room for unrefined guitar-like picking and spiccato strokes from Mailloux. Elsewhere Tanguay contributes minute bell ringing, cymbal taps and marital ratcheting.

No translation is provided but it would seem Muzika can be defined as outstanding and sympathetic musique actuelle trio music.

Curieux parcours que celui du saxophoniste Damian Nisenson: argentin, il a également habité en Suisse et est Montréalais depuis quelques années; musicien féru de jazz et de musiques actuelles, il bénéficia aussi d’une formation de comédien, de clown et d’acrobate, en plus de ses études en histoire, en journalisme et en psychologie! Accompagné du contrebassiste Jean Félix Mailloux et de l’omniprésent Pierre Tanguay à la batterie, il interprète ici huit thèmes originaux plus une pièce traditionnelle, révélant une forte influence de la musique klezmer, est-européenne (Druse dubke), ainsi que de lointains échos du tango (/Paspire). La parenté de pièces comme Hanne et Ojosrojos avec les compositons de John Zorn pour Masada est inévitable, et pourtant le trio leur insuffle une vie propre. La sonorité de Nisenson est chaude et généreuse, aussi bien à l’alto et au ténor qu’au sopranino; son solo sur Carne de mia perna est l’un des meilleurs moments de cet excellent disque.

Other Ambiances related material, the new Malasartes release Muzika of Damian Nisenson, Jean Félix Mailloux and Pierre Tanguay. Malasartes is an offshoot of Ambiances Magnetiques, part of a trio of releases revolving around bassist Jean Félix Mailloux. Which is a little odd because the label is led by Argentinian tenor sax player Damian Nisenson, who is only featured on the Muzika release. As Ambiances Magnetiques gets more involved in jazz, and easy transition as so much of the work on the label has come close to traditional jazz (think Evidence, or the Ambiances Jazz sublabel, featuring work from Jean Derome or Norman Guilbeault). Muzika in particular deserves a listen, if for no other reason than the work of the great drummer Pierre Tanguay, but more importantly for Nisenson’s playing and writing.

Non abbiamo ben capito ancora se la ramificazione dell’associazione DAME in sub-etichette specializzate sia un modo per rendere più organico la variegata produzione musicale delle “musiche attuali”, oppure per confondere. Vedremo. Per il momento vi proponiamo qualche vagito dalla neonata Malasartes Musiques, che sembra orientarsi verso un jazz conversazionale. Fondatore di Malasartes è proprio il sassofonista Damian Nisenson, nato argentino, cresciuto europeo e “attualmente” residente a Montréal. Il suo trio stinge nei pastelli d’un Europa tardo autunnale (ossia del Quebec) le melanconie gastriche del Sud-America e mesce un blend tonale e da camera dove ricorrono suggestioni carovaniere con cadenza di tanghi narcolettici (Hanne), o danze del ventre al ralenti (Ojosrojos, Have a Smoke), cimenti etnici (Druse dubke), morbidi abbracci à la rumba (Nikadance). Il timbro del sax è caldo, pulito e confidenzialmente grasso. Giusto ogni tanto s’imbizzarrisce e ne vorremmo di più, d’impennate. Il contrabbasso di Mailloux è quasi un lubrificante. Tanguay ci pare straordinario come sempre: accompagna, sostiene, colora in empatia con finta flemma una muzika che non ci sconvolge ma ci massaggia piacevolmente le reni. Dal vivo, si dice, è altra storia.

Exotic material is delivered here via Montréal’s avant-saxist Nisenson on tenor, alto and sopranino (sometimes two at once à la Roland Kirk) on 10 tunes, all but Druse Dubke by him, along with fellow-futurist bassist Jean Felix Mailloux and volatile, versatile drummer for all seasons Pierre Tanguay. Mideast melodies are scrunched and stretched by Argentine-born Nisenson, whose flighty, churning improv is a continuous restless journey. This combo set-up gives trio members maximum freedom, and they take full advantage on a never dull outing.

Saxophonist/composer Damian Nisenson, born and raised in Argentina and now part of the Montréal scene, showcases a variety of musical influences and styles on this lively CD. Playing alto, tenor and sopranino, Nisenson moves from the danceable and surreal to the comic, and on to the declarative. European and Jewish influences abound, as do references to the jazz tradition and his Argentinian roots. The trio gets more serious with the avant statement Carne da mia perna, but lightens up with the playful Nikadance, in which Nisenson sings Rock-a-Bye Baby in Spanish for textural effect. In these pieces, the avant co-exists with the lyrical. Nisenson’s first recording in Canada makes us beg for more. (4/5)

You may have noticed that the canadian Ambiances Magnétiques label concentrated on new jazz in the last few years with there series of jazz releases. This trend is continued with the new associated label Malasartes. Although this label welcomes any new music, the first two releases are definitely jazz. The label is founded by Damian Nisenson, an argentinian born musician and actor who came from Europe to Montréal in 2005. He assimilated quickly it seems, as he presents now his own record on his own label. Not bad. Under the wings of DAME distribution his music will now also attract international attention, which was not the case for his musical activities in Argentina with Dosaxos 2 and the Nisenson Kabusacki Dawidowicz Trio. Except for one traditionel tune, Nisenson composed the rest of the music on Muzika. Performers are Jean Félix Mailloux on bass, Pierre Tanguay on drums and Nisenson on tenor, alt and sopranino saxes. If I’m not mistaken I hear klezmer-like influences in some the compositions. Also in his phrasing Nisenson I hear the influence of jewish music at some moments. These and other influences are melted succesfully in a music that in the end is very jazzy in nature. Nisenson proves himself as a disciplined and devoted player who knows what atmosphere he wants to create. The very experienced Tanguay delivers wonderfull contributions.

On Jean Félix Mailloux I can say more listening to the cd of his trio. With Arden Arapyan on piano and Jonathan Racine-Ménard on drums and Mailloux himself on bass this trio brings to life nine compositions of Mailloux. All three of them are young musicians of Montréal, active in miscellaneous musical contexts, which is the modus operandi nowadays for so many musicians that are open to what is happening. In the combination of this trio they met each other for their love for a very lyrical — nightclubbish — kind of jazz. The drummer shuffles his way almost timidly, as does the bass with its warm sound. This way both give room to the pianoplayer, who with his nice touch, plays wonderfull melodies. The compositions are ok, but also very conform the rules of this standarised kind of music. Nothing wrong with it, as it is very well done, but not my piece of cake. Allthough, I have to admit that this cd did tremble my prejudices on their feet, wanting to surrender to the swing.