Eve Risser (born 1982) is a French jazz and improvised music performer, composer and arranger. She mostly plays piano and prepared piano, but also plays harpsichord and other instruments.
Eve Risser | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Risser in 2018 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | 1982 (age 41–42) Colmar, France |
| Genres | Jazz, improvised music |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, composer, arranger |
| Instrument(s) | Piano, harpsichord |
| Years active | 2000s–present |
| Website | everisser.com |
Life and career
editRisser was born in 1982[1] in Colmar, France.[2] She had piano lessons as a child and first saw graphic notation at the age of 11.[3] This "set her imagination free. But those desires were quashed by her instructor, who situated that sort of interpretational freedom within a larger, rigorous practice of study."[3]
Risser lived in Colmar until she was 18.[2] She then studied in Strasbourg for four years, playing improvised music and jazz on the piano and contemporary music on the flute.[2] She decided to concentrate on the piano after completing her studies.[3] She reported that "When I stopped the flute, I felt so limited in my improvisations with timbres that I started to explore the inside of the piano to be able to imitate trumpets, percussions and saxophones [...] I realized that building stuff with my hands for the piano was super fun."[3]
Risser was pianist in the Orchestre national de jazz from 2009 to 2013.[2] The premiere of her White Desert, for a tentet with amateur choirs, was in March 2015.[4]
Playing style
editA reviewer described her playing on the 2012 trio album En Corps as being "anything but conventional, highly percussive, full of muted strings, extended techniques, and repetitive phrases".[5] A Down Beat reviewer of her solo piano record Des Pas Sur La Neige commented on Risser's "arsenal of techniques and tools that transform her instrument into a kaleidoscopic sound machine, producing unexpected tones and timbres."[3]
Discography
editAn asterisk (*) indicates that the year is that of release.
As leader/co-leader
edit| Year recorded | Title | Label | Personnel/Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007* | Ouature | Umlaut | As Donkey Monkey; duo, with Yuko Oshima (drums, vocals, samples) |
| 2010 | Split | Umlaut | Duo, with Joris Rühl (clarinet); released with recordings by OBLIQ (2) and Christof Kurzmann |
| 2011* | Fenêtre Ovale | Umlaut | Duo, with Joris Rühl (clarinets) |
| 2011* | Hanakana | Umlaut | As Donkey Monkey; duo, with Yuko Oshima (drums, vocals, samples) |
| 2012* | En Corps | Dark Tree | Trio, with Benjamin Duboc (bass), Edward Perraud (drums) |
| 2012* | A Nest at the Junction of Paths | Umlaut | As The New Songs; quartet, with Sofia Jernberg (vocals), David Stackenäs (guitar), Kim Myhr (guitars, zither) |
| 2013 | Des Pas Sur La Neige | Clean Feed | Solo piano |
As sidewoman
edit| Year recorded | Leader | Title | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009* | Orchestre national de jazz | Around Robert Wyatt | Bee Jazz |
| 2010* | Orchestre national de jazz | Shut up and Dance | Bee Jazz |
| 2011* | PAK | Secret Curve | Tzadik |
| 2012* | Orchestre national de jazz | Piazzolla! | Jazz Village |
| 2013* | Orchestre national de jazz | The Party! | Jazz Village |
| 2013* | Pascal Niggenkemper | Lucky Prime | Clean Feed |
| 2014* | Jean-Jacques Birgé | Game Bling |
References
edit- ^ "Moment Festival – Festival" Archived 2015-04-13 at the Wayback Machine. Vi Musiker. Retrieved 9 April 2015.
- ^ a b c d Scotney, Sebastian (8 March 2015) "Interview: Eve Risser (Banlieues Bleues, Jazzahead, Jazzdor Strasbourg-Berlin) / #IWD2015" Archived 2015-04-07 at the Wayback Machine. London Jazz News.
- ^ a b c d e Margasak, Peter (March 2015) "Risser's Prepared Piano Work Defies Categorization". Down Beat. p. 16.
- ^ Scotney, Sebastian (25 March 2015) "Review: Eve Risser White Desert Premiere at La Courneuve" Archived 2015-04-07 at the Wayback Machine. London Jazz News.
- ^ Stef (24 September 2012) "Eve Risser – En Corps (Dark Tree, 2012)". freejazzblog.