Dieb13 & Marina Džukljev: Štrudel

Maybe the most appropriate words for the duet between Dieb13 and Marina Džukljev come from Talking Head's song "This Must Be the Place (Naive Melody)," David Byrne sings "The less we say about it the better / Make it up as we go along / Feet on the ground, head in the sky / It's okay, I know nothing's wrong, nothing." Certainly, nothing's wrong here, except Dieb13 (aka Dieter Kovačič) and Džukljev are not occupying the same physical performance space. On November 11th, 2020, pianist Marina Džukljev was in her native Serbia and Dieb13 performed from Austria as part of NOISM 2020, a live stream concert captured here as a 43 minute performance. Without the above knowledge it would be easy to assume the pair were together that evening; the music is that stimulating.

Dieb13's turntables and processing have been heard in performance with improvisers such as Mats Gustafsson, Phil Minton, John Butcher, and Ken Vandermark. Marina Džukljev, a newer voice in music, has a background in free improvisation, classical, and contemporary music. She can be heard with Szilard Mezei and in the Fresh Dust Trio with Samo Salamon. This collaboration between Kovačič and Džukljev creates a space best described as somewhere between minimalist free improvisation and a type of virtual reality field recordings. Džukljev works both inside her prepared piano and at her keyboard, creating both melodic and percussive effects. The music progresses with a spectral, almost disembodied, sense with Dieb13 providing a static-filled vibrational landscape. If your amplifier is at a quiet setting, the music is almost ambient. At higher levels it can almost be ominous. Both options can create exceptional experiences.