What does Alessandro Ambrosi sound like?

An avant-garde accordionist turns his attention to Japan and warm ambience.

The review of ‘The River in The Sky’ by Alessandro Ambrosi

Reed instruments often get pigeonholed into folk music, but Alessandro Ambrosi explores what happens when you place accordions into ambient music. Recorded in Japan, it introduces listeners to field recordings from Kenji Azuma and the shō, a Japanese free reed instrument performed by Ayako Kanisasare. Joined by Anoice band members Takahiro Kido and Yuki Murata, who bring along Japanese instrumentation, piano, and ethereal ambience, Alessandro creates vivid worlds of relaxation and beauty.

The album is fascinating to listen to. ‘誘い -Izanai-‘ opens with singing bowl tones mixed with shō and twinkling electronics. I find the shō can sound quietly menacing and creepy, and the latter third of the track leans into this vibe. The notes and chords twist off colour and sound dissonant, as the shō’s high-pitched wheeze brings chills to the hairs on the back of your neck. It doesn’t aim for creepy, but the tone seeps in over its relaxed, emerald-glistening shine. ‘木霊 -Kodama-‘ takes a more mysterious route with water and pond sounds over accordions and Biwa (a Japanese lute). Ayako Kanisasare’s voice soars like a ritual prayer for peace over the top of the dewy ambience with a hollow cavern reverb in a way that feels deeply spiritual and otherworldly.

After two hues of melodic pieces, ‘水月 -Sui-getsu-‘ brings the accordion together with the Biwa and a Gekkin, whilst a lone ritual taiko bellows out. It sounds like a lazy Japanese summer afternoon in a quiet village, mixed with steps ascending to a temple. Each instrument curls and unwinds beautifully as if each instrument is breathing for yoga. ‘幽玄の森 -Yūgen no Mori-‘ focuses on bells, electronic synths, distant pianos, and beautiful chimes that clink over the accordions. It sounds like time has slowed to a crawl. Running river water and forest sounds breeze in and out as different instruments bustle into action. The final two minutes are supremely angelic and will relax anyone’s mind.

‘Little Friends’ changes style entirely, bringing in soft electronic drums that dance a tiny beat over metallic tins that act like cymbals. As they march away, backed with bright, chirpy birdsong (looped into the beat no less), Alessandro Ambrosi works his accordion magic to create a joyous piece. I could hear Tunng doing something similar to this if they tackled ambient folk music. The drums stay, and turn into glass bottles and wooden boxes for the searching, yet elusive ‘Wandering Spirit’. This track lives in the spaces between melodies, as it spends almost five of its six-and-a-half-minute run evolving into its final melodic form. The final payoff isn’t as satisfying as it could be, since the instrumentation doesn’t quite unify into a collective uprising, but then this album doesn’t surge; it trickles. That leads us lovingly into the warm, panoramic synth pad, accordion, nature sound, and wind chime outro of ‘The River in the Sky’. Oddly, having said the album is a trickle, it’s here where Alessandro lets the river reach the sea. Tuneful synth whistles and some gentle synth swells are backed by minimal percussion as we reach a soft, comforting end.

What this album lacks in immediate melody, it makes up for in tone and feel. The field recordings are varied and often processed into loops subtly to add rhythm without you realising. The accordions, bells, lutes, and keys are layered and interwoven like an entangled web of tree roots. Alessandro wraps each one around the other, so they create motions of feelings, but aren’t whole movements on their own. The title of the album, ‘The River in The Sky’, takes its name from the Japanese word ‘天の川’ for the Milky Way. It tries to convey that a river crosses the sky temporarily, just like sound crosses space to be heard, and for that brief moment, home is temporary in that space between. This album sounds exactly like that lingering, impermanent moment. It’s lovely, yet ever-changing and slipping through your fingers. If you like ambient electronic/classical hybrids, then this is a release for you.

Recommended track: 木霊 -Kodama-

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