Cramps/Edel
Demetrio Stratos : Suonare La Voce (I,pub.2006)**°''
The DVD spans the whole period of vocal experiments, which includes his first two solo albums, fragments from the 1979 concert, an interpretation of sonic word theatre performance of Antonin Artaud (accidentally I got my hands on a recording at the same moment), and an ultra short fragment of (his band) Area in the bonus sections. Besides a few documentary-like fragments, showing scientific investigations in the possibilities of Demetrio’s vocal possibilities for instance, most of it are interviews, in Italian (and without subtitles) of which the most memorable moments are from a black and white television report where Demetrio explains the possibilities and historical evolution of the voice. From what I understand from Italian, here it becomes interesting. (I don't understand too well Italian, but compared to the rational talks about Demetrio’s performances and abilities, Demetrio’s own inner fire explanations and demonstrations are like 'speaking in tongues' for me). I was made clear that the human voice was the first musical instrument. He learned an African technique to expand its possibilities by using the two pressed together hands as a resonance chamber, some idea which at some point must have led to flutes. Demetrio says that all instruments were not made for the voice but inspired by the voice. Just remember tabla and Indian rhythmical singing (fitting actually well with Hindu language). What I unfortunately did not understand is how and why he focuses on a small metal plate in his streched hand before him while singing, as if this is a projection of the membrane of his voice. I can imagine that many instruments are also combinations of what produces resonance and which limits or expands the resonance chamber. Thinking about the voice could perhaps create the best ideas for new instruments, because for most instrument their resonance chamber does not change at all. It is not just about the air pump. Different flutes in the organ for instance re-shape the form of the ‘throat.(?)...
Demetrio’s performance of Antonin Artaud, sounds like coming from Demetrio’s bodily-power of singing, but like a enjoyment in the technique more than from deeper textual-driven significations, a not disturbing neglect, but that is what often happens to such “compositional” ideas : they tend to become abstract contemporary technique-driven performances. I always had the same feeling with interpretations of the poetic “Pierrot Lunaire” from Schönberg from which I heard only one performance, from the 50s which could catch that magical-theatre spirit.* Demetrio enjoys and discovered his voice like a child. Also personally as a child I had spent hours in bed trying to find wide ranging possibilities of voice and lips with breath sounds, splitting tones in 3 to 4 voices and learning some overtone singing when lying down at very young age, repeating this only privately at random in bedroom circumstances. You can see the performance of a comic-like western story including Indians and cowboys, all with vocals only.
But because the video is under the form of a documentary with lots of talk it’s not the best for foreigners. The fragments of performances themselves are rather short and are spread all over the video. Only the black and white interview with demonstrations is completely convincing and from what I have preferred was left intact and as a separate track. I would have preferred a DVD like an archive of recordings rather than a wordy compilation. Never the less I will treasure the best moments on them.
* Accidentilly, I just saw that Zeitkratzer just released Friedl interpretation of this piece to break the seriousness of most intellectual interpretations of this piece, but I have no idea how that will be.
