April 10 2011
Said Robert Schumann on first hearing Chopin:
Hats off, Gentlemen, a Genius!
Says the Pianobabbler on first hearing Chris Donnelly's Metamorphosis:
Hats off, Dudes, a Brilliant musician!Chris Donnelly introduced himself in the Pianobabbler's pages last year (Pianobabbler 131; see the Pianobabbler's reciprocal introduction in Chris' blog here.)
Chris Donnelly: gifted pianist, technically and musically. Thoughtful. Visceral. Post-pigeonhole: now jazz, now classical, now rock, now roll. A blend of styles. A rare blend of the analytical and the emotional.
Metamorphosis. Chris' new solo piano recording. The title refers to the dazzling M. C. Escher 1940 woodcut print Metamorphosis 2 showing, in Escher's celebrated style, a progression of shapes that puzzles and pleases the mind in equal measure. Squares become reptiles, become insects, become birds, become buildings, become squares.
Chris' composition, also titled Metamorphosis, follows the Escherian tessellated flow. He starts with a simple theme that evolves into another, then another, and another, increasingly textured, varying in shape and style, high energy, quiet energy, threaded through with rocking improvisations, relentless melodies, gripping rhythms, until Chris reverses the accumulated weave, bringing it back to the initial simple theme, which now serves as an ending.
Metamorphosis comes from the Greek for transformation, to change form. Chris' shapeshifting exploration transforms the solo piano into an instrument of inner enchantment.
Hats off indeed. Hats off, held low in reverence, for music that raises the roof off the soul.
The Pianobabbler has babbled.
The Pianobabbler is a RonDavisMusic production. The Pianobabbler's blog posts appear weekly at pianobabbler.com. Please remember to leave your comments and thoughts below. Subscribe to the RSS feed. And subscribe to RonDavisNews by clicking on the Mailing List link, above right. And follow us on Twitter.
- Click here for details and ordering information on Chris Donnelly's Metamorphosis
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A brilliant adventure. On his latest recording, My Mother's Father's Song, Ron Davis embraces both his family's rich cultural heritage, and boldly re-engages with the jazz standard.
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