Search - Gustavo Santaolalla :: Ronroco

Soothing sounds from all over southamerican continent

Manny Hernandez | Bay Area, CA | 06/18/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Interesting how the producer of such heavy acts of "Rock en Espannol", such as Molotov, Bersuit Bergarabat, Arbol and Cafe Tacuba (this last one, being the "softest" act of the group,) and 70's Argentinan rocker, can come up with such a SOOTHING recording. He plays along with a couple of other musicians all sorts of string instruments from accross South America, and comes up with a VERY diverse recording, with a distinctive signature: you can almost SEE THE PLACES, you can travel with him. Highly recommended:
-Track One, "Way Up" - a progressive and beautiful string arrangement that takes you to new altitudes.
-Track Four, "Coyita" - a beautiful track that leads you through a pastoral trip.
-Track Eight, "Lela" - was just like being back home... (I'm originally from Venezuela.)
-Track Nine, "Iguazu," which I actually first heard in the soundtrack of "The Insider"."

Generally beautiful, sometimes meandering guitar works

Christopher Culver | 07/20/2005

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Gustavo Santaollala is famous for his rock exploits in 1970s Argentina, his work as a producer of the rock en espanol genre, and for his scores to three Hollywood films. However, he is also a keen performer of a wide array of traditional Latin American stringed instruments, and in the instrumental album RONROCO he explores the possibilities of these simple instruments, accompanied only by the occasional vibraphone or whistle. Gustavo's work here might be best compared to that of guitarists like Robin Guthrie (see his album IMPERIAL), in which the guitarist creates through numerous overdubs an enveloping soundworld. However, Santaolalla shows a great interest in polyrhythmic experiments on many of these tracks, and a consciousness of a folk tradition not found among many modern guitar players.



Like many listeners, I was attracted to this album by hearing the song "Iguazu" in the movie THE INSIDER. "Iguazu" is one of the most moving songs on the album, but it is fairly limited and Santaollala shows a greater range of ideas in other songs here. In the opening "Way Up" he eschews melody for a shower of arpeggios in differerent rhythms. "Coyita" takes a traditional waltz form and applies unusual instrumentation. In "De Ushuaia a la Quiaca", possibly the greatest piece here, his approach seems at first minimalistic but then proves to serve as a backdrop for piercing and vaguely Andean woodwind tones.



Some songs, however, aren't very gripping at all, such as "Gaucho", which seems overly simplistic, and "Zenda", which lacks direction. However, in the end the album may be a worthy purchase for those who like instrumental music and are curious to see how a former rock star responds to Latin American traditions. Try listening to "Iguazu" first, and if it grips you, check out RONROCO."

Gustavo Santaolalla - Ronroco

Felipe Cussen A. | Santiago, Chile | 11/19/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"A pesar de su trabajo como productor de bandas más ligadas al pop y al rock, como Café Tacuba, en este disco Gustavo Santaolalla nos muestra su visión personal de la música latinoamericana, y, en particular, de la música andina argentina. Para esto, ocupa instrumentos tradicionales como el charango, el ronroco (un charango más grande), la guitarra y el guitarrón, pero, si bien los ocupa respetando sus características intrínsecas y sus técnicas específicas (como los redobles y arpegios del charango), los toma para crear obras distintas a las que usualmente escuchamos. Por otra parte, añade instrumentos de otras tradiciones, como el whistle, la armónica, el vibráfono y la melódica, que entregan colores completamente distintos, pero muy enriquecedores (bien ensamblados y empastados, además, gracias a una muy buena grabación). En cuanto a los motivos musicales, las armonías y los ritmos, todos ellos están tomados de la tradición folklórica antes mencionada, pero con alteraciones: los giros y los cambios de acordes son más osados, y se permite más espacio para el desarrollo de los temas. Esto último ocurrre en más de un par de obras, que prácticamente no tienen melodías, y están constituidas por amplios paisajes sonoros de arpegios y/o redobles, que provocan un efecto completamente ambiental y envolvente, con apenas ligeras variaciones a lo largo de su duración. En definitiva, este disco es una excelente muestra de cómo, a partir de elementos conocidos y tradicionales, y gracias a una recombinación, cuestionamiento y adición de elementos, es posible conseguir obras muy novedosas y originales.P.D.: dentro de la misma línea, recomiendo el disco "Lejanía" de Inti Illimani, en el que este grupo chileno aborda el repertorio andino con composiciones propias y ajenas, y con arreglos igualmente interesantes."