ELINA DUNI QUARTET - Matanë Malit (2012) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

“Matanë Malit” (Beyond the mountain), Elina Duni’s ECM debut, is a homage to Albania. A singer looking at her roots from a present-day vantage point as a musician engaged in improvisational processes. Jazz experience informs her exploration of Balkan folk songs – with attention to atmosphere, the shape of the sound, the tactility of the structures, the implications of the words, … “It’s about serving the song”, she explains, “and about reclaiming and reinventing it.” Duni found her route to Albanian songs after forays into classical music, blues and jazz standards. Digging deeper into the Balkan region’s troubled history, she has uncovered many songs of real beauty and power, older songs from her homeland and from its vast diaspora. “Matanë Malit” includes songs of lovers, heroes, workers, shepherds, exiles, songs of resistance. Traditional songs arranged by Elina Duni, and new music expressively moulded in the tradition. ecm
Tracklist :
1    Ka një mot 5'11
(Muharrem Gurra)
2    Kjani trima 4'06
(Traditional)
3    Kur të kujtosh 4'06
(Elina Duni)
4    Vajzë e valëve 5'29
(Neço Muko)
5    Unë ty moj 3'55
(Traditional)
6    Erë pranverore 3'34
(Tish Daija)
7    Çelo Mezani 5'41
(Traditional)
8    Ra kambana 4'15
(Traditional)
9    Çobankat 5'14
(Traditional)
10    Kristal 4'52
(Elina Duni)
11    U rrit vasha 3'24
(Traditional)
12    Mine Peza 3'56
(Traditional)
Credits :
Elina Duni - Voice
Colin Vallon - Piano
Patrice Moret - Double Bass
Norbert Pfammatter - Drums

ELINA DUNI QUARTET - Dallёndyshe (2015) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

On Dallёndyshe (“The Swallow”), her second ECM album, Elina Duni sings songs of love and exile. The troubled history of the Balkan regions has inspired many such songs and the pieces here, primarily from Albanian traditional sources, are interpreted with intensity and insight by Elina and her band. The Tirana-born and Swiss-raised singer has become an exceptional musical storyteller embodying the songs’ narratives, in a way that transcends genre definitions and language limitations. “This time there is a sense of lightness to the feeling and energy of the album,” says Duni. “Even though we are dealing with tragic themes of exile it is not as dark as [the ECM debut] Matanё Malit.” In its sense of drive, Dallёndyshe opens up “a different groove, a different momentum. It’s become more rhythmic. Sometimes it’s almost a trance-like propulsion.” The programme of Dallёndyshe also looks to the Albanian diaspora. The last two songs on the album, “Ti ri ti ti klarinatё” and the title track are, respectively, from the Arvanitas and Arbёresh communities of Greece and Italy. In the wider world Elina still finds herself asked frequently to define her music. It has clearly become more than a hybrid of ‘jazz’ and ‘folk’. ecm
Tracklist :
1    Fëllënza 6'03
(Muharrem Gurra)
2    Sytë 5'09
(Isak Muçolli)
3    Ylberin 5'05
(Traditional)
4    Unë në kodër, ti në kodër 6'12
(Traditional)
5    Kur të pashë 4'48
(Traditional)
6    Delja rude 5'19
(Traditional)
7    Unë do të vete 4'59
(Traditional)
8    Taksirat 3'27
(Traditional)
9    Nënë moj 4'14
(Traditional)
10    Bukuroshe 4'16
(Traditional)
11    Ti ri ti ti klarinatë 2'49
(Traditional)
12    Dallëndyshe 2'46
(Traditional)
Credits :
Elina Duni - Voice
Colin Vallon - Piano
Patrice Moret - Double Bass
Norbert Pfammatter - Drums