MACHINEFABRIEK with Anne BAKKER
“Wisps”

On 5 April 2022 I e-mailed Anne about working on a follow-up to our album Oehoe (released by Where to Now? Records in 2020). On April 7 she recorded a bunch of violin, viola and vocal improvisations at home. Gorgeous sounds and melodies, a gold mine to work with. The material basically wrote itself. I started editing and adding electronics (mainly virtual instruments, I don’t own a real harp), and by the end of that month, the album was finished.

I always found the music that Anne and I make a bit pastoral, or eerie. Thinking about a title, will-o’-the-wisp came to mind, a ghost light in folklore. It fits the elusive quality of the music, I believe. As shorter is always better, we went for Wisps.

The cover art is a collage by Wytske van Veen. She posted the work on her Facebook page when I was busy with the album, and I immediately made the connection with the music. I love it when things fall into place like this.

So here it is, 28 minutes of (in Mariska Baars’ words) ‘pwetty weeeird’ music. Hope you’ll enjoy listening to it as much as we enjoyed making it.

Rutger Zuydervelt, May 2022

Constructed by Rutger Zuydervelt,
Rotterdam, April 2022.

Violin, viola and vocals performed
and recorded by Anne Bakker.