Penard / Orlando Bass - Piano Works [CD]

This double album is the testimony of an encounter between two artists delighted to discover that they hold a number of facets in common with regards to creative approach: a freedom of sound, aesthetic diversity, a unique vision of keyboard writing where the piano is treated more like an orchestra than as a solo instrument, the desire for expressiveness which excludes neither references to Neo-Romanticism nor the use of modern techniques, and finally, a wealth of creative energy as well as a profound desire for artistic collaboration. Despite these similarities, their artistic worlds are singular in their own right. While the music of one is often narrative, at times brutal, yet always striving towards rhythmic and poetic ideal, not unlike a Greek Aed recounting a captivating tale, the other composer uses a language steeped towards the fantastical, mischievously playful and sometimes reeling joyfully in it's extraordinary mobility, at once constructed with utmost care while offering the listener a liberating sense of improvisation. They are a generation apart, a factor that could easily divide them or achieve just the opposite, connecting them as the composers choose to enter a dialogue, confronting themselves in their work, resulting in a fruitful collaboration. This approach gives way to a healthy emulation, inspiring creativity and diverting from the often solitary world of the composer.