With
“The album makes a highly intelligent orchestral project tangible. The two formations, French and South African, merge into one. The compositions of the Workshop de Lyon carry a lyricism that is both visceral and festive (Travail – Fosse), close to the sensitivity of South African hymns. Familiar with cine-concerts, the musicians of the ARFI know how to paint an atmosphere in a few brief sonic flashes, inventing landscapes conducive to fleeting escapes, with a dramatization of airy gravity. The rhythmic foundation opens up space for skillful brass duels, extending the perspectives of the photographic testimonies. But it is also in the realm of musical correspondences that an intimate dialogue is established, the beautiful escape of the soprano embracing a South African choir (Fanfares), or the raw material of an improvised duo between double bass and bass (Bassing Beauties). An emotional eloquence full of meaning.”
— Thierry Lepin, Jazzman, October 2004
