Silences by Jacomo (1978)

Some women are scared of scents that are too green, or whose predominant notes include violet leaves, herbs, cut grass notes, or galbanum, a bitter aromatic gum resin that famously greened up Chanel No. 19, Bandit, and Vent Vert.

To those folks I say, I'm sorry. Silences is not going to change your mind. First off, Silences by Jacomo is green to the extreme, so green that in my oft-mentioned Haarman & Reimer fragrance "Duftatlas" fragrance family chart, it's clinging to the side of the green end of the floral spectrum like a weird sea creature suctioned to the side of an aquarium.

With a bitter, herbaceous almost chalky galbanum beginning, Silences starts off with a tiny drop of sweetness from orange blossom, but then throws lemon and bergamot into the mix just so that you know it's not kidding around about this "green" business. (Galbanum resin is obtained from the Persian ferrula gummosa plant you see to your right.)

A soft, almost powdery whisper of orris bridges the green with the delicate and clean florals rose, lily of the valley, and jasmine. By the time it dries down, this austere beauty is delicately soapy, spicy and soft all at once.

Top notes: Galbanum, bergamot, green notes, orange blossom, lemon

Heart notes: orris, jasmine, rose, lily of the valley, hyacinth

Base notes: Moss, sandalwood, cedar, musk (Perfumers: Gerard Coupy and Jean-Claude Niel)

Correction: Yves Tanguy and Jean Claude Niel

In Vent Vert, galbanum signaled the Rites of Spring, the rawness and near-savagery of things coming to life. In Chanel No. 19, as in Silences, galbanum suggests contemplation, stillness, and — well, silence.

More so than Chanel No. 19, though, and I'm not sure how the perfumers achieved this, Silences feels as one Basenotes reader put it, "melancholic," and another, "pensive." To those descriptors, I would add, "spooky."

I That's right, Silences is a beautiful and yet spooky perfume. From its opaque, black, urn-like bottle to its name, which is a little deathly, Silences is something of a surreal perfume. It''s connected to life, with green notes and florals that signify renewal, yet it's oddly disconnected from the familiar, a little uncanny. (It reminds me of a Rene Magritte painting: so realistic as to be unfamiliar, i.e. surreal. In this painting, "The Voice of Space," abstract spheres hover above a realistic field, rendering it strange.)

I don't know if there's an outer limits of green outside of which, if you travel, you reach the Twilight Zone, but if there is, Silences is there, waving its green flag.

When I began thinking about Silences a few hours ago, wearing it, sniffing it, reapplying it, etc., I was going to begin this post by saying that green fragrances are like the short haircuts of the perfume world, appreciated by the few who know you don't have to be conventionally "feminine" to be sexy. Sometimes cerebral, slightly intimidating fragrances can be just as sexy, I would have continued, providing the icily gorgeous Catherine Deneuve in "Belle de Jour" as an example.

But the longer I wore Silences and took in the mood it conjured, I realized this wasn't just a green perfume of the fresh, wild and raw Vent Vert variety. This is a perfume so bitter, bracing and sour that it lives up to the review Tania Sanchez (I think unfairly) gave to Chanel No. 19 in Perfumes: The Guide. And mind you — the following is an endorsement for Silences, a perfume I will definitely be wearing this spring/summer: "This extraordinary perfume appeals to anyone who has ever wished to know what it is to be heartless." 

 

Comments

[Kristy Victoria]

SPOOKY? Again, I am slain. Your blog has given me more lemmings this year than the perfumer industry has released new scents, I'm afraid! Or maybe just better ones :)

[Perfumaniac]

Haha, Kristy. I hope this is a good thing? The image of a small rodent jumping off a cliff doesn't sound promising! :)

[Museinwoodenshoes.wordpress.com]

(Lemming = the perfumista rush for a scent praised on a 'fume blog. Many's the scent I've developed a lemming for after reading some fine review...)

When I first tried Silences - recommended to me personally by a friend who knew of my love for No. 19 - last fall, I didn't like it at all. At ALL! Unfriendly, sour, waspish... bleah. NO. But this spring, having spent several days wearing No. 19 and its almost-twin AG Heure Exquise in order to compare them, I picked up Silences again.

And it worked. *Beautifully.* I didn't feel led to buy any HE, but I bought a bottle of Silences after spending only an afternoon with a sample of it. The rose is so clear, and the iris so gentle, and the whole thing greened up by galbanum and moss - I love it. Oddly, I love it better in humid weather, but I've noticed that anything vaguely chypre-ish seems to blossom for me in humidity, when it can seem mean to me in sunny weather.

(BTW, this is Mals86 - I'm just using my wordpress acct to sign in these days instead of using the open ID.)

[Museinwoodenshoes.wordpress.com]

Oops, hit post too soon. Meant to comment that I don't find Silences at all spooky or heartless - I find it gentle and reflective, although not in a spineless way. It is pensive, yes, but feels as though it's pondering how best to make its own way, without pandering to other people's preferences. Which, I suppose, is speaking to me personally these days.

[Perfumaniac]

Thanks for the explanation of lemming in the context of the perfume world, Mals, and your take on Silences.

Heartless might be taking it too far, I agree, but I just love that quote so much! Perhaps — self-contained and slightly indifferent to the world, inward, or reflective, as you put it, are better ways of describing it. I really like the idea that it's "pondering how best to make its own way..."

Whatever valence one chooses to give this perfume, it is an introverted, inward scent, not looking for attention from others. Thanks for helping me think more about this lovely perfume!

[Anne]

Wonderful, thanks for the addition to my 'green' education. I shall seek this out. I have a mini of Vent Vert on the way, so I'm having fun. I too thought the Sanchez review of Chanel 19 was a bit unfair, at least as far as the EDT is concerned.

[Anne]

I meant to ask - can you describe the different concentrations?

[Perfumaniac]

Hi Anne, I'm pretty sure the one I reviewed was an eau de toilette; I had to reapply it quite a few times during the day. I haven't tried the EDP, but I do know there's one available. Maybe someone else can chime in?

[Flora]

I just adore this - and believe it or not it's a recent discovery for me! As a huge fan of all things Green, it was instant love.

[ScentScelf]

In terms of concentrations, Silences is commonly available in a Parfum de Toilette. If you are using a sprayer bottle, that's probably what you have. You can get parfum in a dabber bottle, but that is harder to come by. They are quite similar, and I'd say it's not worth getting your knickers in a twist trying to land the parfum concentration. And it will be more difficult to find the parfum.

Though it is quite lovely dabbed onto your wrists. Just what you'd think...denser at the heart. (Sorry; had to be honest.)

As long as we're talking shop here...the illustration you have is of the reformulated Silences. Pretty much on track with the original. But if anybody for those keeping score at home...the older version is in a matte box, and the word "Silences" appears once. The newer version has the laser print multiple echoes thing going on.

[rk]

Hmmm. wow... as an absolute lover of Chanel No. 19.....the galbanum, rose, iris, lily in particular.....after reading your review I think I need to get me some Silences - and quick! lol

[Perfumaniac]

rk: Silences is a lot sharper and louder (ironic, no? considering the name?) than Chanel 19, but in a sense, it fills in all the blanks the restrained Chanel 19 leaves blank. Would love to hear what you think if you do get it!

[Perfumaniac]

Flora: I think Silences is getting its due these days. It's quite modern and clean — but still interesting. I'm with you. It was instant love for me, too.

[Perfumaniac]

Thanks, ScentScelf! I switched out the photo, as I don't want to confuse people by showing the box from the reformulated Silences. I have the dabber — a mini. I love it. Nice to have someone who's compared both the reformulation and the older version!

[Carole Fallon]

Silences is the only other perfume I own that I can substitute for my beloved Vent Vert....if I ever run out! It IS pensive, not melancholy as in L'Heure Bleue, but thoughtful and lovely.

[Perfumaniac]

Its beautiful, Carole. An interesting green to use as a sub for Vent Vert...

[Wendy Ackerman]

I am looking for the Golliwogg scent.
Have not been able to find information.
It was produced by Vigny Paris France.
Thank you,
Wendy Ackerman

[Perfumaniac]

Wendy, You can find the perfume on eBay for...$500! http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Le-Golliwog-Perfume-Bottle-Figure-by-Vigny-w-Box-1920s-Black-Americana-/160749959022?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0hash=item256d71b76e     And heres some info on the company: http://reviews.ebay.com/Vintage-de-Vigny-Perfumes?ugid=10000000002855501

What a horribly racist bottle though! Im curious what something like that would smell like. Where does your interest in this come from?

[Ferris]

Interesting perspective on Silences. I never knew it existed save a base notes forums search for alternatives to Chanel No. 19 edt. I haven't smelled Silences yet, but since it supposedly smells similar to No. 19, I will most definitely give this one a test run to see if I like.

[Miguel Matos]

Hello dear Barbara

I've been reading your blog for some time and I must say that you make me jealous for writing so well. I am a journalist for almost 20 years and rarely do I read texts I wish I had written myself. Congratulations. Your writing is inspiring and very inspired! Thank you!
Miguel

[Perfumaniac]

Miguel, that is so kind of you. Thank you! 

[Carrie]

I've only recently discovered this perfume. I ordered a bottle and fell in love so deeply that I ordered two more for backup within the week! To me, all the facets of this perfume are so perfectly in balance, the green, the florals, the oakmoss. I've been sampling green perfumes like mad the last couple of weeks and this is the very best so far. I'm loving that it's a cold green, rather than a warm one. It brings to mind sitting at a window watching a spring rainstorm, raindrops hitting the window, a cold wind in the trees. It seems to be to be a contemplative perfume.

[Rachel]

I just found your site and, I too, enjoy your writing. Just wondering how Silences compares to vintage Cabochard? I have that, so, if you could compare to that I could get my bearings a little.

I'm actually looking for a hyacinth soliflore, or near to it. That's how I came across Silences, looking for a hyacinth perfume. Would you recommend anything?

Thank you!