“Avant-garde quartet, stylistically stateless, at times hypnotic”
Ambra Chiara Michelangeli – Viola
Francesco Diodati – Guitar
Francesco Guerri – Cello
Stefano Calderano – Guitar
tellKujira was born in autumn 2020.
Since then it has self-produced a series of artistic residencies, focusing on improvisation and collective writing, instant composition, timber, prepared instruments, alternative tunings.
It is in this process that a flexible musical path was born, in a continuous search for structure, open to contamination and which aims to discover a unique blend composed of abstract soundscapes, at times ambient, poly-rhythms, industrial timbres. A versatile blend, which does not hesitate to de-construct any type of language.
“We imagined a kind of rock band in the form of a classic quartet, with two electric guitars instead of two violins. By virtue of this chamber choice, every individualism has been set aside in favor of a “We”, a focal center that was also the center of our music. Collective research from a perspective that is not necessarily aimed at performance immediately has become the main vector for the emancipation of the quartet from individual individuals and for the search for a common language. “
At the edge of the world, in a white phone booth in front of Kujira-yama, Whale Mountain, there is an old black phone, disconnected. Anyone can access it and send a message to a known or unknown recipient. tellKujira lets the wind propagate the sound waves to draw an imaginary immersed in reality and projected towards the unknown.
tellKujira is co-produced by Area Sismica, one of the most important European companies for avant-garde music, and Emilia Romagna Music Commission.
‘… a concert of strong emotional impact also thanks to a total interplay of the group – mature balance in the contribution, always dialogic, of the individual musicians, concentration, deep listening, collective narration, wise use of electronics as well as dynamics, always pertinent to the sound fabric in the making – which has given life to organic music, without forcing or second thoughts, in search of what is indispensable and necessary. One of the most intense moments, for the writer, of the entire review’
[Daniela Veronesi, ‘tracce di jazz’ CARTOLINE-Suedtirol Jazz Festival]
‘Halfway through the set, the atmosphere definitely changes to challenging and the post-rock and contemporary influences come to the fore, which makes the music played by the magnificent quartet of musicians even more interesting. The penetrating set, enhanced with electronics, becomes even more intriguing. Fantastically interesting opening day’
[Dick Hovenga ‘Written in Music’ Het houdt maar niet op met spannende klanken op Südtirol Jazzfestival]