Robert Desnos (1900-1945) was a French poet, participating in the French Dada movement of surrealism. This album mixes the voice of Antonella to recite the poetry and the piano/”vision” of Pat Battstone to add mood, textures and drapery to the words. Chionna can make her voice sound like a reed on her percussive “Wifeless, Plump Buck Moonigan” and dramatic with her accent on “If You Only Knew.” Both voice and piano are like pointed darts on “Halfway” while a read of “Nature Boy” is eerie in its abstraction. Battstone shows his piano creativity on a Satie-esque “Les Yeux d’Yvonne” and use of space on “The Voice of Robert Desnos.” While he creates long shadows on “Spaces Inside Sleep.” Only one song is in French, but the lyrics all use Chionna’s dialect as an instrument in and of itself. An intriguing way to take in poetry.
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