East

Description

It was at the beginning of 2019. A crazy idea, an old unfulfilled desire, a lingering obsession, a dream within reach that had always been put off until later: to make a beautiful journey... a long journey! For a long time, I had glimpsed this bridge linking two worlds: the music I practice, improvisation, this jazz said to be European, and 20th-century classical music. A few great elders and friends had paved the way; so, alone with my cello and a few bows, I decided to cross this bridge. Right away I came up against a mountain that seemed impassable to me: Penderecki. I almost turned back or looked for another way around it. But no! At home, in hotels, in dressing rooms and even on planes, I held on, took my time and finally, having reached the summit, I discovered in the distance a magnificent dense forest of blackened staves: Ligeti. I plunged into it, scratched my way through it to find my path. Then I discovered a few clearings, sublime stripped-down miniatures by Hans Werner Henze. Then stubbornness and high standards began to bear fruit: pleasure finally arrived like an encouraging gift... an intimate and addictive satisfaction. One day in March, we were confined. Time stopped, froze... mine multiplied! Every day, at dawn, I set off again. I decided to start recording. Hindemith and the five movements of his sonata fascinated me as much as they challenged me. My friend Dominique Pifarely offered me a deep and organic Litanie. I discovered Honegger’s Paduana, an elegant buried and forgotten jewel. Finally we were released from lockdown and with Berio, “Les mots sont allés”... Today, my music stand is bending under the music of fascinating composers that I would like to play and that, I know, will nourish my own. In the end, I discovered a world, another place that I love, a welcoming land on the other side of a bridge that I hope to cross for a long time