Performer: Hélène Grimaud, Nitin Sawhney
Format: FLAC (tracks)
Label: Deutsche Grammophon
Catalogue: 4795268
Release: 2016
Size: 451 MB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: yes
01. Berio: Six Encores: No. 3, Wasserklavier
02. Sawhney: Water – Transition 1
03. Takemitsu: Rain Tree Sketch II
04. Sawhney: Water – Transition 2
05. Fauré: Barcarolle No. 5 in F sharp minor Op. 66
06. Sawhney: Water – Transition 3
07. Ravel: Jeux d’eau
08. Sawhney: Water – Transition 4
09. Albéniz: Iberia, book 2: No. 5, Almeria
10. Sawhney: Water – Transition 5
11. Liszt: Années de pèlerinage, 3ème année (7 pieces), S. 163: No. 4, Les jeux d’eau à la Villa d’Este
12. Sawhney: Water – Transition 6
13. Janáček: In the Mists: No. 1, Andante
14. Sawhney: Water – Transition 7
15. Debussy: Préludes – Book 1: No. 10, La cathédrale engloutie
One of the world’s most celebrated pianists, renowned for the emotional intensity of her interpretations, Hélène Grimaud presents a beautiful, haunting call to nature – ‘WATER’ is an evocative, experimental, deeply personal project combining Hélène’s two greatest passions: music and nature
On this release, Hélène performs all water-themed, romantic and contemporary classical pieces by composers such as Liszt, Debussy, Ravel and more, who all shared a fascination for Water
In addition to these traditional evocations of rivers, lakes, seas, snowflakes, and raindrops, the album also reflects a contemporary perspective on water – and the lack thereof. These elements are woven into the album narrative through musical ‘Water – Transitions’ – ambient soundscapes composed, recorded and produced by Nitin Sawhney, a celebrated world-class producer, songwriter, DJ, multi-instrumentalist, orchestral composer and cultural pioneer
Reaffirming her role as one of classical music’s most captivating performers, combined with her sense of commitment to the ecological and humanitarian challenges of our day, this project underscores Grimaud’s contention that “there are two significant measures of a society: how we support culture and how we treat our environment.”
With the aptly-named Water, Hélène Grimaud probes the strength and beauty of H20, the most precious gift of nature, and a source of fascination for the pianist. Produced by Nitin Sawhney, who appears more regularly on the electro scene, here he has especially emphasized the fascination that water has inspired in many composers of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. This idea not only led to this record, it also resulted in a project of the Grimaud with Scottish artist Douglas Gordon, previous winner of the Turner Prize: a concert-installation entitled Tears Become … designed specifically for the exercise room of a former military building in New York’s Park Avenue Armory. Performed in December 2014, this show mixes visual art, music and architecture, and has at its center the “Water” programme of Hélène Grimaud. Before she starts playing, the gigantic hall was gradually flooded to give the impression of a huge “water field” (in the words of Gordon), which eventually encircled the piano concert. Nine composers are represented on the album which opens with Berio’s Wasserklavier (“aquatic Piano”). Rain Tree Sketch II by Takemitsu, the Fifth Barcarolle by Fauré, Ravel’s Jeux d’eau, Almería Iberia by Albéniz, the Liszt’s Jeux d’eau à la Villa d’Este, the Andante Dans les brumes of Janáček and Debussy’s La Cathédrale engloutie. These pages were recorded live during the New York concert-installation and then linked together by seven Transitions written and recorded by Nitin Sawhney. Finally, with Water, Hélène Grimaud brought together in a unique way her twin passions for music and the environment…