Five Dances

Annette Kruisbrink guitarise, compose et duettise avec son frère Éric; belle entité musicale toute imprégnée de culture, qui a assez de talent et de courage pour nous proposer un son, un style, une approche sans concession. C'est original mais compréhensible, moderne et sensible, recherché sans être abscons.
Agréable surprise donc que cette musique audacieuse, jamais mièvre, souvent musclée mais qui sait se faire caresssante et surtout inventive à souhait... Ce n'est pas un hasard qu'Annette Kruisbrink ait été plusieurs fois récompensée pour la qualité de ses compositions (pas seulement pour guitare mais aussi pour orchestre de chambre).
(Gérard Rebours, Les Cahiers de la Guitare)

These are not traditional dances with titles but musical pieces with dance elements.
The first, beginning in 11/8, begins on a pulsing G from both players before other notes gradually appear and the rhythms change to 7 and then to 6 before resorting to 4/4 for a lead bass line tune against offbeat guitar chords. The instruments then play the melody in unison for a few moments before the guitar dances away leaving the bass playing the original melody. Rhythms change a lot In this first piece and it is a great opener to the set. The second is marked Ritmico 3/8 and is interwoven with sections of rubato. The dance here is far more traditional in style than the first. The tempo Increases to 168-crotchets-a-minute and is in the relatively unusual key of F minor. The piece remains in common time throughout and opens with a leaping bass melody against guitar chords. This comes and goes interwoven with an arpeggio idea before closing the dance with a chordal section staying firmly in or around F minor. No 4 is very 'Eric Satie' in all but name. Pizzicato bass notes on beat one along with dolce chords on beat two in a piece of 3/4 time and you see what I mean. Gentle and lilting this is a lovely contrast to the other pieces, only becoming hazily dissonant around the middle of the piece. Everything fades away as it started with an A major 7th chord. The final 3/4 dance is frenetic and being in D minor starts firmly around arpeggios involving the keynote. This continues for quite a while before the arpeggios turn away from D minor for some welcome contrast. although the guitar remains firmly in arpeggio mode for the duration of the piece, while the bass generally has the easier task and only has long notes to play for most of the time.
At 14 minutes in total this fine set would grace any programme. The pieces contrast beautifully and they keep one's interest throughout. The players of such a combination have to be competent without being too virtuosic.
(Chris Dumigan, Classical Guitar Magazine)