Lisette Spinnler: SOUNDS BETWEEN FALLING LEAVES

Lisette Spinnler – vocals; Stefan Aeby – piano; Patrice Moret – bass; Michi Stulz – drums

Sound Engineer: Daniel Dettwiler

The falling leaves of autumn, where winds unleashed across the fields blow trees bare, carrying leaves through the air, creating small whirls on the ground, and silence descends… "Sounds between falling leaves" are mostly elegiac, modal songs with simple harmonies. Their movements are gentle, delicate, and inwardly directed. In nuances, subtle vibrations, and sometimes, as in Cézanne's watercolors, merely suggested, they unfold an imaginary space with finely coordinated colors, exuding a powerful force from within, born of a tenderly virtuosic interplay between calmness, slow flow, and striking accents. Lisette Spinnler's songs are dialogues with nature, inhabiting and touching her soul from childhood days. Her songs, with vocals in whispers, shimmer, and shades, tinted and artistically molded, appear natural and do not crave events – they are events themselves, provided we listen attentively.

It is the most sensual and, in its own way, introverted album yet from the vocalist, featuring songs, all written by her except "Afro Blue." Significantly, she has also set two poems by Emily Brontë to music. The British poet (1818-1848), who wrote under the pseudonym Ellis Bell and published only one novel (Wuthering Heights, 1847) and a single volume of poetry (Poems, 1846, together with her sisters Anne and Charlotte Brontë) during her lifetime, sang of fantasy worlds and nature in her poetry and was an enthusiastic animal lover. Lisette, occasionally on stage with her own spontaneous language of fantasy, seems to share a soul connection with her.

"Sounds between falling leaves" is also the first album with the current lineup, and Lisette was wise to always give her top-notch rhythm section the necessary room to maneuver. Piano, bass, and drums reveal a signature that is firmly grounded in the present, where collective sound takes precedence over solo brilliance. This naturally gives more weight and significance to the voice, which, when present, also takes center stage. The quartet has been working together consistently for four years: Stefan Aeby on piano, bassist Patrice Moret, and Michi Stulz on drums – all fantastic musicians with fine motor skills, sharp minds, and the most sensitive interplay. They bring Lisette's songs to life optimally. The improvisational spaces inherent in the compositions are almost consistently utilized and propelled collectively, even if a dialogue between two instruments occasionally takes precedence or one instrument comes to the forefront. Lisette and her musicians are closely knit throughout the album, maintaining the songs and their essence in their own dynamic balance – between falling leaves.

For more information, visit lisettespinnler.com

Recording, Mixing, and Mastering: Daniel Dettwiler
Recorded at: Jazzcampus Basel, using vintage mobile technology from Idee und Klang Studio, Basel
Mixed and mastered at: Idee und Klang Studio, Basel