13/06/24

Wim Mertens presents Polytics

Wim Mertens presents POLYTICS, the first official video of his new album RANGES OF ROBUSTNESS.

In these ‘special times’- feeling anno 2024 - Wim Mertens investigates different kinds, series and ranges of the notion of ‘robustness’ in his new opus Ranges of Robustness. In only 9 compositions all (or at least many) ranges are presented ‘in a way our epoch demands’, in the words of the composer. His 21-musician ensemble calls on all the musical colors: woodwinds, a special attention to the saxophone section (soprano-, alto-, tenor- and baritone sax), brass, strings and a full rhythm section with acoustic and electric guitars, multiple harps, percussion and the composer himself on the piano. This extended, contemporary quasi-symphonic approach is needed according to Mertens as an answer to the challenges of the ranges of robustness as we experience them today. With the song Marina’s Music, Mertens, a long-time admirer of her work, offers an ‘homage’ to the Russian poet Marina Tsetajeva (1892-1941). She functions like a central character - that is lost in a way - among these overwhelming Ranges of Robustness.

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Publishing Usura Srl.

Video production Red Leaf Squad

Direction and editing Pierfrancesco Bigazzi and Giulio Dell’Aquila

Camera operator Giorgia Pagano