Alexei Pliousnine - music performer, promoter, producer, lecturer, critic, leader of APosition Creative Union.
Alexei was born in 1962 in Saint Petersburg, Russia. He graduated from college with a degree in theoretical physics. Became active in music in early 1980-s.
1981 – 1990 Participated in numerous artistic projects: founded rock band Lolita, which released a 1990 tape album “Moscow Vacations”, since featured in the chart of 100 Best Tapes of Russian Rock. Participated in creating of "Gorbushka" music and artistic center
1990 -1994 Moved to St.Petersburg and opened a first rock’n’roll music shop “Nirvana” in the city. Participated in many projects and actions at the art center “Pushkinskaja 10”.
1994 – 1999 Performed and recorded several albums with an avantrock band RDDB
1999 – 2004 Involved with the Sergey Kuryokhin International Festival SKIF
2001 – 2004 Acted as the SKIF Artistic Director and participated in organizing of SKIF in Berlin on 2003
2002 Created the APosition Creative Union and became its producer as well as a member musician
2004 Took part in free jazz improvising project that included a recording session at the Fantasy Records produced by Henry Keiser. These recordings were compiled in two albums as Kaiser/Pliousnine
2005 Founded the International Music Forum APOSITSIA that became an annual event gathering together experimenting artists from all over the world
2007 In collaboration with other St.Petersburg artists established Share SPb – multimedia project
2008 – 2012 Participated in organizing Cosmonoise festival in St.Petersburg
2011 Took part in organizing multimedia festival Media Night in St.Petersburg.
2011 Established Diafragma records label and published on vinyl “Aposition sampler” consisting recordings by several St. Petersburg’s experimental projects from 80-ies till 2011.
2012 - 2013 Organized and participated in MUZKONSTRUKTOR project for children with disabilities.
activity Alexei Pliousnine is an active writer and authored many articles on music, various essays, as well as publishing an online music magazine "MusArt"; played several characters in various movies; received the Petropol Award for music to a poetic project "Voices of St. Petersburg" and delivered several lectures in Finland in 2002 and at Pennsylvania State University in 2006 on contemporary Russian music culture. Alexei also performed and gave a masterclass at Chicago State University. On 2011 – 2012 Participated in Night of the Museums festival with multimedia installations. On 2012 by the invitation from Sibelius Music Academy in Helsinki Alexei participated in Tulkinnanvaraista music series and gave a masterclass at Sibelius Academy of Music.
concerts Alexei uses his own guitar playing technique. Alexei was the first Russian improvising artist to perform at CBGB’S, Tonic and Issue Project Room in New York. With different projects Alexei has been participating in several festivals, SKIF (including SKIF in Berlin), festival HABITATS 2006 in New York, Space of Joy - Khan Altay 2008, Space of Joy – Karelia 2010, Figments (New- York), Servateguse Muusika (Tallinn), Systo 2009, 2010, 2012 and many other festivals and forums in Russia, USA, Germany, Poland, Finland, Argentina. On 2006, he took part in Pauline Oliveros Deep Listening class at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute where he performed a solo work “Scott of Antarctic” the first part of Heroic Project (soundart collaborative project by the members of APosition). On 2011 as a part of Art in Antarctic international program by DNA institute (Buenos-Aires) visited Argentinian bases Marambio and Esperanza in Antarctica in order to make the project “Sound of Silence”. Alexei became the first Russian musician to be performing in Antarctica.
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projects While in APosition Union he took part and established many multimedia and musical projects, such as multimedia trio YGO performing ancient Russian Orthodox chanting tradition Znamennij Raspev, APOSITION ORCHESTRA - a free improvising collective by the members of Aposition Union and friends, DWA – an experimental duo with Pavel Mikheev (guitar, drums), Silence Corporation (USA/Russia) - with Peter Principle (Tuxedomoon), Dok Gregory (Psychic TV), multimedia exhibition Life and Death of Vinyl, Heroic project, Aposition orchestra. In collaboration with VJ Elik with the name Regis III he is currently working on Invincible project based on novel by polish sci fi writer Stanislaw Lem. Alexei is also currently performing solo by the name of Monoxpom. He also participated in various music and theatre related projects, including "Simon the Magus", a joint production with the Mariinskij (Kirov) Ballet. During his career Alexei issued a number of albums on CDs, vinyl and CDRs.
Alexei established his own guitar playing technique that he uses in his solo project MONOXPOM. The result is a unique musical style called IMPROG, which is similar to minimalism with the elements of noise, drone, ambient, minimal techno and progressive and experimental rock.
During his career Alexei issued a number of albums on CDs, vinyl and CDRs.
MONOXPOM is a solo project for prepared guitar by Alexei Pliousnine. His technique of playing the instrument is a result of several years of experiments influenced by such masters of the guitar as Keith Rowe and Fred Frith.
Alexei does not use any electronics and all effects are pursued merely by hand and a whole arsenal of rods made of glass, wood and metal, as well as other unexpected objects. It makes performances by MONOXPOM very attractive and intriguing.
Alexei calls his genre of music Improg, derived from improvisation and progressive rock. MONOXPOM performance is always live spontaneous improvisation. Yet the music is well structured and very picturesque. Sometimes it sounds like a soundtrack to a movie.
The style is close to minimalism, microtonal music, with elements of ambient noise and even minimal techno. One can recognize the motives of the Russian North and church bells, African rhythms and discipline of Chinese or Japanese theatrical tradition or even aggressive black metal and drone.
If we put it in terms of fine art, conventional guitar playing is classical realist painting, while MONOXPOM is abstractionism, cubism or surrealism.
Alexei’s improvisations are often inspired by science fiction, fantasy, or movies.
performed with: Peter Brotzman, Famoudou Don Moye, Patti Smith, Brian Godding, Carlos Zingaro, David Murray, Keith Rowe, Phill Niblock, Shelley Hirsch, Burton Greene, Raymond Boni, Yanka Diaghileva, Egor Letov, Sergey Letov, Nick Rock’n’roll, Vlad CPC, Gary Lucas, Henry Kaiser, Soren Runolf, Dror Feiler, Daniel Carter, Borah Bergman, Lukas Ligeti, Frank London, Jon Raskin, Gino Robair, Damon Smith, Marco Enieidi, Lou Grassi, Charles Gayle, Tim Hodgkinson, Jacques Di Donato, Хavier Charles, Didier Lasserre, Christian Brazier, James Fei, Mola Sylla, Rob Schwimmer, Tom Buckner, Peter Principle, Dok Gregory, Tim Hodgkinson, Dmitry Kahovskij, Pierre Moerlen, Sam Nacht, Sabir Mateen, Chris Corsano, Jasun Martz and many others.
promoted: minimalism godfather Terry Riley, legendary Polish prog rock band SBB, Peter Brotzman, Marcus Stockhausen, Pamela Z, Bill Drummond, Jim Thirlwell (aka Foetus), Masahiko Satoh, Pierre Moerlen’s Gong, Hans Reichel & Rudiger Carl, Charles Gale, German krautrock pioneers Faust, ex Samla Mammas Manna leader Lars Holmer, Kimmo Pohjonen, Keith & Julia Tippett, Frank London, Tenores di Bitti, Iranian classical collective by Reza Moafi, Han Bennink, Kampec Dolores, Italian avant rock – free jazz combo Zu, Willem Broeker Kollektieff, Misha Mengelberg, Otomo Yoshihide, Gjallarhorn, Shelley Hirsh, Eugene Chadbourne, ex Can singer Damo Suzuki, mugam master from Azerbaijan Alim Kasymov, Michel Berkmans of Univers Zero, Keshavan Maslak, contemporary Dutch composer Theo Loevendie, Je Chun Park, John Cale of Velvet Underground, Holger Czukay from Can, Fred Frith of Henry Cow, Slave Pianos, Magma, Henry Kaiser, John Oswald, Hamid Drake, William Parker, Gary Lucas from Captain Beefheart Magic Band, David Moss, David Murray, Deep Listening founder composer Pauline Oliveros, Marco Enieidi, Lou Grassi, Tim Hodgkinson of Henry Cow, Jacques Di Donato, Хavier Charles, Didier Lasserre, Finnish vocal quartet Me Naiset, Christian Brazier, Metamorphosis, Tara Fuki, De Kift, Vladimir Tarasov from Ganelin Trio, Anatoly Vapirov, Valentina Ponomareva, Moscow Art Trio, Milan Svoboda, Canadian avant violinist Nash the Slash, Sainkho Namchylak, Lukas Ligeti, Soren Runolf and Dror Feiler from Lokomotiv Konkret, Mark Stewart from Bang on a Can, Evelina Petrova, royal Korean ensemble Ge Um Hwe, Rhys Chatham, Mia Masaoka, Geoff Leigh of Henry Cow, Jooklo Duo, Saadet Turkoz, Ernst Reijseger, Keith Rowe, Phill Niblock. Show less
