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MANJA RISTIĆ

Awakenings
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REVIEWS OF
Awakenings
  • Similarly, in her release titled Awakenings, water becomes the main driver behind a series of compositions made of field-recordings from her home-base in Korčula, Croatia, including, as we read in the press release,  abandoned ex-Yugoslav military compound on the island of Korčula, ancient quarry on the island of Vrnik, the village of Račišće, Lumbarda ancient aquatorium, sound pollution of the water traffic in the Pelješac-peninsula channel, Ražnjić lighthouse; a musical playground in front of the Museum of Contemporary Art in Belgrade. Water is a form of awakening the natural against deterioration and negligence, and the dissipating whirlsof water pollution, but also Ristić’s own way of withstanding the passage of time in place, of making her own personal imprint on the topographies she engages with.
    acloserlisten.com

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    Ethereal drones, eerie piano notes, mysterious noises and soft rippling ambience drifts solemnly through the air over placid waters in a strange desolate landscape. The atmosphere is tranquil and calm, but also somber and tense. The lonely motions of the water allow for quiet contemplation, child-like wonder and deep introspective thought…yet there’s a darkness gurgling away, just below the surface of all things…

    Manja Ristić is a Serbian violinist, sound art, field recordist, poet, curator and researcher. A sick talent and an incredible artist. ‘Awakenings’ is an album of beautiful sound poetry and haunted ambience, made using hydrophone & contact microphones (in various different locations around the Balkans), violin, abandoned pianos, a toy synth found in the garbage and an array of found objects.

    The eight compositions that comprise this album are dreamy, serene, melancholic and strangely playful…with a vast array of underwater recordings taking up the foreground of the mix. You will hear water trickling and gurgling over aqueous rocks, gently rippling and swaying, rushing rapidly through narrow channels, whirling and swirling through drains, sloshing and reverberating through caves, and sometimes crashing violently against everything its path.

    The music that Ristić has layered over these field recordings is minimalistic and subtle, evocative and atmospheric. Mournful organ-like ambience, tingling bells, glistening chimes, sparse piano notes and an array of percussive object sounds dance and ricochet about in quiet freedom and slow sullen beauty…

    ‘Awakenings’ is a beautiful, poignant and haunted sound journey. The mournful tones, mysterious watery textures and plaintive soundscapes that Ristić has created in this album are wonderfully immersive and emotionally engulfing. This is exquisite sound art, and a delicious aural treat. Great stuff.
    fogsongs.blogspot.com