Jean Guillou - Biloulou-Safari (Improvisation pour le film Congo-Safari de Marcel Isy-Schwart) (2023)

In principle, this double disc is just the soundtrack of a film, put together in a few hours. Basically, the libretto announces, it is “one of the treasures of Jean Guillou’s work”. So, all well and good, let's not get carried away, and examine the thing a little more calmly, please, tsss tsss.
This double disc restores 85' of improvisation inspired by – and intended to be the music of – Biloulou [insect in Swahili, as everyone knows] safari, a film by Marcel Isy-Schwart renamed Congo-Safari for the purposes of the marketing cause. In the libretto, Frédéric Brun sets the scene: it’s night. Saint-Eustache seems to have dozed off. However, in the bowels of the church, a screen was installed under the organ loft; further away, there is a cinema projector and means of capturing sound; finally an organist sets to work who does not yet resemble the mad scientist we know: the international star was only 42 years old at the time. Today, his nocturnal work is presented on two discs thanks to the fine devotion dedicated to him by the Augure association – presentation of the issues, investigation into the archives, restitution of the original, images and contextualization texts as rich as they are engaging .
The drama begins from the start, in the depths of the Beast. The tension cannot even explode as she seems to take pleasure in self-sustaining her anger. The rare breaths are marked by a jerky rhythm which does not bode well. Is it descriptive music? Without a doubt, because it is evocative even when you ignore the synopsis! But, above all, it is music that captures thanks to the sonic intoxication associating the fruition of the narrative potential of sounds (when you do “pouët”, it doesn't tell the same story as when you do “dziiing”, well no), technical mastery and gourmet registration taking full advantage of the infinite possibilities of the Saint-Eustache organ.