Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Tibor Szemzo': Snapshot From The Island

132

Tibor Szemzo': Snapshot From The Island

By

View read count
Tibor Szemzo': Snapshot From The Island
Hungarian “minimalist” instrumentalist/composer Tibor Szemzo is considered a genius by many although; his accomplishments as an artist are sometimes overshadowed by the likes of superstars, Steve Reich and Philip Glass. Snapshot From The Island was originally released by Leo Records in 1987 and thankfully, Leo has decided to reissue this gem on CD, which coincides with a brand new release titled, The Other Shore (see upcoming AAJ Dec ‘99 reviews) featuring compositions spanning 1992-1997. Snapshot From The Island is a wonderful excursion into ambient-electronic-acoustic dreamscapes which could also be considered an offshoot of what many call the “minimalist movement”.

The title track, “Snapshot From The Island” is a 24-minute tone poem featuring Szemzo performing on “computer drums” and flutes of various pitch. Here, Szemzo provides a soft rhythmic undercurrent to balance the somewhat ethereal and delightfully hypnotic motif as he also electronically emulates bird and animal sounds which magnifies the mood or imagery of a far away “Island” paradise. Szemzo is a true artist, a painter with a fertile imagination, as he invites the listener into his introspective world of thoughts and dreams.....Szemzo’s lush, yet subtle flute work evokes a surreal landscape on ”Water-Wonder”. On this piece, Szemzo pursues circular passages while also intelligently utilizing a dash of echo to enhance the aura of a magical or mystical place, which for all intents and purposes seems timeless or otherworldly. “Let’s Go Out And Dance” is a dream-laden piece, featuring Szemzo’s “cosmic” flute performances atop a soft pulse and Laszlo Hortobagyi’s synthesizer backwashes which conveys a sense of fulfillment or perhaps a scenario of – peaceful celebration. Again, Szemzo offers up more visions of paradise ..... which could very well have been a subtitle to this beautiful recording. The overall organic nature of Tibor Szemzo’s music makes it all seem so real or something that our imaginations can easily grasp. There are no hidden clues or underlying mysteries behind all of this as Szemzo’s artistry speaks for itself! A museum piece for the ears........* * * * ½

Web: Leo Records: www.atlas.co.uk/leorecords/

Web: Bahia Music: www.bahia.hu

Personnel

Album information

Title: Snapshot From The Island | Year Released: 1999 | Record Label: Leo Records

Tags

Comments


PREVIOUS / NEXT




Support All About Jazz

Get the Jazz Near You newsletter All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.

More

Hold On
Mark Winkler
The Hat with the Grin and the Chuckle
Ben Thomas Tango Project
Eternal Moments
Yoko Yates

Popular

Old Home/New Home
The Brian Martin Big Band
My Ideal
Sam Dillon
Ecliptic
Shifa شفاء - Rachel Musson, Pat Thomas, Mark Sanders
Lado B Brazilian Project 2
Catina DeLuna & Otmaro Ruíz

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.

Install All About Jazz

iOS Instructions:

To install this app, follow these steps:

All About Jazz would like to send you notifications

Notifications include timely alerts to content of interest, such as articles, reviews, new features, and more. These can be configured in Settings.