PIANISTS OF THE SURREAL (2/3/2011)

As the piano essentially reached its final form in the nineteenth century, many, if not most pianists tend to lean heavily toward the literature of that century from Beethoven through early Debussy.  With such a pool of excellent repertoire there is no way even the most prodigious pianist could begin to reach into this repertoire broadly and deeply.  It is no wonder that many are content to stay in this realm (and perhaps delve back into the eighteenth century for the glories of Bach, Scarlatti, Haydn, Mozart and others). However, some pianists are fascinated by developments of the twentieth century and also feel a special obligation to keep the instrument alive in the minds of composers (and of course, many of these pianists are composers themselves).  And just as there is a small subset of "traditional" pianists who also explore instrument such as the harpsichord, fortepiano and clavichord there is a small subset of  pianists who have embraced the keyboard synthesizer and the technological elements that have gone along with it.  It might be safe to say that all these types of pianists are not always on speaking terms with each other.  That they can all exist is one of the glories of our time.

The Italian pianist Francesco Tristano is just beginning to find his voice as an explorer of both piano and keyboard synthesizer and electronic extensions of both.   The You Tube clip link gives something of Tristano's sound world although this particular clip is more "New Age" than I experienced.  True to the spirit of "downtown" music, Tristano draws on many different sources and assembles them in a multitude of ways.

 Francesco Tristano

On February 3 at (Le) Poisson Rouge, Tristano enlisted the aid of pianist Bruce Brubaker for an ensemble performance of a sixty-minute work entitled Simultaneo. This performance consisted of performances of all or parts of works by Orlando Gibbons, Dietrich Buxtehude, Robert Schumann, Olivier Messiaen, Philip Glass, Earle Brown and John Cage encapsulated within a stream of electronic sounds that sometimes expanded the sounds of the piano or synthesizer, sometimes punctuated certain notes and sometimes provided a dreamlike environment in which the works could "float."  That both pianists have great "chops" as they say, as well as abundant musicality was amply demonstrated.  The demands of ensemble were enormous and the musicians were always focused and in the moment.

In his mid-20s, Tristano is just at the beginning of his journey as a composer and performer and it will be interesting to see what lies in the future for him.  Like Elliott Carter, he is following his bliss and choosing his own path.