Etienne Rolin: flutes, basset horn, glissotar, sound painting, voice.
John Kenny: trombones, carnyx, recorders, conch shells, voice.
Etienne Rolin, a Franco-American composer based in Bordeaux and John Kenny, an Anglo-Irish composer based in Edinburgh, have enjoyed a close friendship and fertile creative collaboration since 1983, following a chance encounter at the CDMC ( centre de documentation de la musique contemporaine )in Paris. Rolin was in town to be at the premiere of his orchestral piece Jardin Baroque, commissioned by Pierre Boulez and to be premiered that night. Kenny was in Paris to give a series old solo recitals, following his prizewinning performance at the Gaudeamus International Competition in Holland. A few days later, they recorded their first album of improvised music, and have continued to explore ideas across styles and instrumental combination in over 30 notated compositions and over 100 live and recorded improvised performances and sessions in the UK and France.
Both Rolin and Kenny are improvising composers, and for both of them language and theatricality is often a key element and inspiration for their work. Highlights of Rolin’s compositions featuring Kenny include locking Horns for saxophone and carnyx, Embracing the Unknown for trombone, harp and string quartet, Quick Sands alto voce and Spirits in Stone for solo trombone, and most recently Travelling trombone concerto – a completely improvised, sound painted work for large ensemble and trombone solo. Kenny’s works featuring Rolin include the scores for the TNT Theatre/American Drama Group Europe touring production Moon Palace and Tartan Chameleion’s Edinburgh Festival production Hypothetically Murdered, as well as a vast multi-media production The Secret House, set on the wild North East coast of Scotland, involving dance, theatre, film and puppetry.
Etienne Rolin’s compositions have been featured on three of John Kenny’s albums: Secret House, Embracing the Unknown and Locking Horns. The Locking Horns duo have released multiple albums on the EROL Records label, via Bandcamp. Find them at: https://etiennerolin.bandcamp.com/
Current projects include expansion to a trio with electro-acoustic composer and organist Jean-Marie Colin, and a large scale multi-media project, Tintignac Revelation. Drawing inspiration from the physical environment of the Correze region of France where the magnificent Tintignac Carnyx was discovered, Locking Horns collaborate with soprano Sarah Brabo, percussionist Lou Renaud- Bailly, Jean-Marie Colin performing on a revolutionary electronic sound and vision instrument, the karlax, Patrick Kenny on carnyx and trombone, and poet Jessica Saraf, to develop a 90 minute site specific multi-media sound portrait of the place and the instrument.