book of air vvolk

Se (in) de bos

SR444
CD digisleeve: SOLD OUT
LP black vinyl + printed innersleeve

'Se (in) de bos' - a slow paced 60 minute piece performed by the 18 musicians 'vvolk' orchestra composed by Stijn Cools. 'While getting deeper in the sound of vvolk, the perception of time fades. It is astonishing how improvised music can create such a timeless, and calming experience for the listener.'

'Book of air vvolk' is known for it's whole night laying down concert, and is one of the only acoustic ambient orchestras in the world.

This is the 3rd album in the 'Book of air series', as part of the granvat platform curated by the brothers Stijn and Bert Cools. www.granvat.com
As in the 1st Book of air album 'Fieldtone' and the 2nd 'vvolk', the parameters time and sound are again widely present. This time the 3 interwoven bass lines give the deep drive and foundation of the sound, completed with a layer of acoustic instruments and sparkling chords on top. 'Se (in) de bos' is inspired by the fluctuation objectivity of our daily observations.
'vvolk investigates performing and improvising music, in close relation to present time; what are the possibilities in playing music, when changes in this music pass by unnoticed? How do we as musicians relate to the running time of a performance? This clearly challenges the improvising musicians, and makes audience and performers discover new territories in collective improvisation.'

Cools brothers

Stijn Cools plays drums and composes in a wide range of styles, preferably linked to improvised music. He works as a sound designer/electronic musician, and he plays the drums as well as many eastern percussion instruments. Experimenting with rhythm and sound, and the interest in clear artistic concepts are great sources for his artistic development. His diploma in architecture and scenography makes an important contribution to his thinking and developments in the musical field. Recently Stijn also started to dedicate himself to audio production (recording/mixing/mastering). In 2009 he won the 'Gent Jazz talent prize', in 2010 the 'Toots Thielemans Jazz Award' at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels. In the Summer of 2016, he won another Gent Jazz prize with the band Hoera, on behalf of the Gent Jazz Festival. Together with his brother Bert Cools, Stijn founded the art platform and art production house 'granvat' on www.granvat.com. With granvat they created a house for their projects and collaborations with fellow artists. It also contains work by internationally respected artists: Hariprasad Chaurasia, Solo Sissoko, Eyvind Kang. Stijn Cools is the composer and co-founder of the Book of Air series.

Bert speaks music from his childhood with the guitar as medium and driving force. He receives the Dutch Erasmus Award for 'best musician' (2010) and graduates cum laude at the conservatory in Rotterdam. With the band Hoera. they won the Gent jazz price in 2016. In addition to composing for various projects, Bert performs concerts all over the world (India, Mexico, NY, Europe, China, Taiwan, Japan etc.) with his own bands and projects. (Merope, Hoera., Book of Air vvolk & Fieldtone, JK's Kamer).