Vladimir Chekasin - Aspect Ratio (2020)

The release Aspect Ratio is a documentation of a friendly meeting of two personalities. One of them is Vladimir Chekasin, who became a popular figure of the national culture in the last century. The other is Alexey Kruglov, the star of the new generation of Russian improvisation scene. The artists are connected by friendship and fruitful cooperation, which started in 1999 when Chekasin invited the very young Kruglov to take part in his projects. In the late 90s – early 2000s projects were both stage- and studio oriented. Studio projects were connected with soundtrack recording. Then there was a prolonged pause ending in 2017, when Vladimir and Alexei continued their collaboration.

Kruglov’s texts became the inspiration for this album. Together with Chekasin’s colorful electronics, they form the overall composition’s polyphony. The duo approaches the text as a sound object. Performers develop literary and musical material in large-scale structures, exploring its immense sound manifestations. It is like a theatre performance, in which two main characters interact with each other (saxophones or voices of Chekasin and Kruglov). At the same time, electronic effects are both secondary characters and some sort of scenery to what is happening. The album was recorded in real time without adding layers or pauses, very much like a concert. We hope that listeners find something inherent to their individuality and artistic views in this recording.