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Aleksandar Pejovski: Paper Dragon

By Nenad Georgievski
January 15, 2005
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You can't really say what makes a piece of music good, but you can instantly recognise that "thing" that makes it sound good as soon as you hear it. It is far easier to say that a piece of music is good rather than describe the sort of feelings it provokes inside you. Sounds do a lot more rather than simply entertain us. All great records inspire emotions and feelings that cannot be described with words. Kind of Blue is exactly this kind of record, as is David Sylvian's Secrets from the Beehive. Their greatness is not a result only of the technical proficiency of the players or their reputations, but also of the emotions that are invested in and incited by these sounds.

A similar ambience has been captured on Aleksandar Pejovski's debut album, Paper Dragon. Aleksandar Pejovski is a young composer who grew up in a musical family (his father Ilija Pejovski is a jazz composer and Berklee graduate—class of '77), benefiting greatly from his father's experience and instruction in the harmonic basics of jazz and arranging. He studied percussion with Emil Klan and Zoran Spasovski (Anastasia, Mizar), and at the FMA he attended classical composition classes at Prof. Tomislav Zografski. In August 2004, he attended the festival at Barga, Italy, where he received an award for most original big band composition "Ludje" ("People").

By using piano and a cello, Pejovski captures the sacred ambience typical of Arvo Pä²§'s works and the simplicity and the melodic subtlety of Roger Eno and Sakamoto. These two instruments blend together quite well and the beauty of this release is achieved through simple melodies and effortless transitions, rather than fast piano runs and dynamic movements. The duo performs exquisitely and seems to do so effortlessly. The overall effect, however, is one of peacefulness. It is interesting that the titles of the pieces lend themselves to images of intimacy—like "11 Fragments For Quiet Dying of Love," "Anxiosa," and "No Direction." It is fair to consider these works as paintings that leave you absolutely spellbound. Paper Dragon is a very special recording that listeners can enjoy on many different levels. It will enchant, challenge, seduce, surprise, and delight those who approach it.

Track Listing

1. Haiku; 2. 11 Fragments For Quiet Dying of Love; 3. Anxiosa; 4. No Direction; 5. Haiku; 6. Piano Solo.

Personnel

Aleksandar Pejovski

piano

Aleksandar Pejovski-piano; Dragan Gonevski - cello. All composed by Aleksandar Pejovski; Bratislav Zafirovski - sound engineer and producer. Recorded live at the Museum of the City, Skopje.

Album information

Title: Paper Dragon | Year Released: 2005 | Record Label: Hidden Dragon

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