A bristling electro-acoustic duo encounter in which Ilia Belorukov's restless modular synthesis collides and intertwines with Alex Riva's recorder work and effects, generating playful yet volatile improvisations that shift between lo-fi textures, glassy winds, and surging electronic fragments, as tension, friction, and timbral curiosity drive the music through constantly mutating sonic terrain.
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Sample The Album:
Ilia Belorukov-modular synthesizer
Alex Riva-recorders, effects pedals
Click an artist name above to see in-stock items for that artist.
Label: Notice Recordings
Catalog ID: NTR092
Squidco Product Code: 36994
Format: CASSETTE
Condition: New
Released: 2025
Country: USA
Packaging: Cassette
Recorded in Zurich, Switzerland, on September 14th, 2022, by Ilia Belorukov.
"A set of improvisations between prolific Russian modular synthesist Ilia Belorukov, now based in Serbia, and Alex Riva, a Zurich-based flutist, here focusing on woodwind recorders. The pair have performed with Notice Recordings alum Jason Kahn, and toured as a duo with the novel instrumentation they use here, presented on Wrestling for Futility.
The pairing is not a combination we hear often, and Belorukov and Riva seem to relish in the obscurity and uniqueness of the timbres and textures conjured by their instruments. A tension exists between the electro and acoustic sounds, the kind of dynamic friction that can keep two sound streams independently afloat, while also dissolving and enmeshing until individual sonic characteristics are imperceptible.
Together, they nimbly weave through the kinds of harmonic hairpin turns at which both modular and small wind instruments excel. Riva's glassy intonations gradually blossom into insistent torrents, while Belorukov's timbres move between stuttering, ripping textures and a variety of tones, remaining appealingly lo-fi and never staying in one place for too long.
The sense of bustling, playful activity is a hallmark of this release, revealing the unexpected connections between the two players and their method of sound production."-Notice Recordings
Artist Biographies
• Show Bio for Ilia Belorukov "Ilia Belorukov is a musician from Saint-Petersburg, Russia. He works in the directions of improvised, noise and electroacoustic music. He's a member of different projects with local and foreign musicians. He collaborates with artists who work in other musical directions (from hardcore and metal to academic contemporary music); with dancers and painters; with theater. Ilia practices an experimental approach of sound extraction on alto saxophone with objects, uses electronics and other instruments. Also he is a founder of Intonema label (www.intonema.org) and one of curators of Spina!rec label (www.spinarec.bandcamp.com). Organizer of events in Russia, co-organizer of the SpinaFest and Teni Zvuka festivals in Saint-Petersburg. He writes reviews for his own blog on Syg.ma, was reviewer of Contemporary Music, Music & Time, Topot and GEZeta journals. Ilia had played with such musicians as Keith Rowe, Alfredo Costa Monteiro, David Stackenas, Radu Malfatti, Lucio Capece, Jason Kahn, Birgit Ulher, Ignaz Schick, Jonas Kocher, Gaudenz Badrutt, Stefan Thut, Arturas Bumsteinas, Thomas Buckner, Bryan Eubanks, Jack Wright, Andrew Drury, Andrey Popovskiy, Alexei Borisov, Kurt Liedwart and many others. Released his works on labels Copy For Your Records, Ilse, Cabin Floor Esoterica (USA), Hideous Replica (UK), Creative Sources (Portugal), QuasiPop (Ukraine), 1000fussler (Germany), Mikroton, Intonema, Spina!Rec (Russia) and many others. He participated in various festivals: SKIF, Teni Zvuka, Aposition, ReMusik (Saint-Petersburg); Noise & Fury, Long Arms, Tilde 2 (Moscow); Budapest Spring Festival (Budapest); Gogolfest (Kiev); Jauna Muzika (Vilnius & Klaipeda); Angelica (Bologna); Baba Fest (Rome); Altera Festival (Naples); Jazz Bez (Lvov); John Cage Year (Lublin); Theses (Kemerovo); Helsinki City Festival, Chance Meeting (Helsinki) etc." ^ Hide Bio for Ilia Belorukov • Show Bio for Alex Riva Alex Riva is a Zurich-based improviser and experimental musician whose work dissolves conventional boundaries between timbre, technique, and genre. A predominantly self-taught performer, Riva focuses on recorders of various sizes and other wind instruments, exploring their full sonic potential through extended techniques, micro-sonic textures, and spontaneous interaction with sound and space. His music ranges from solo performances and intimate duos to collaborative projects involving electronic, electroacoustic, and multi-instrumental improvisers. Since at least 2008 Riva has been active on the European free and underground improvised music scene, performing, recording, and touring with a broad network of creative musicians, dancers, and filmmakers. He has appeared in ensembles such as Kilirlumb (with Dominik Blum and Marc Kilchenmann), the duo with bassist Lukas Müller, and Vava Maudit (with Gabriel Valtchev), as well as in various trio and collective settings. Riva's recorded work reflects his adventurous sonic curiosity: releases range from field-inspired solo explorations like Varanasi recordings I to collaborative projects issued on labels including WideEarRecords and Scatterarchive. His performances frequently emphasize deep listening, acoustic nuance, and cross-pollination between improvised music, noise, and experimental sound art. As an active figure in Zurich's vibrant improvised music community, Riva continues to develop new projects and collaborations that foreground the recorder and other wind sources as vehicles for abstract expression and sonic discovery. ^ Hide Bio for Alex Riva
12/15/2025
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12/16/2025
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Track Listing:
SIDE A
1. Squared Circle 1 2:34
2. Squared Circle 2 8:46
3. Squared Circle 3 7:07
SIDE B
1. Squared Circle 4 20:45
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