Dustin O’Halloran – Vorleben
Sonic Pieces 2010
[tags: neo-classic, instrumental, solo piano, concert, 2010]
Listen while reading:
Opus 28 (from Vorleben)
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If you followed the musical development of Peter Broderick, you’ll be familiar with his Docile recording which featured mostly instrumental solo piano music. Anf if you liked that, there is a good chance that you’ll like the new Sonic Pieces release as well. Dustin O’Halloran, known for his wonderful and varied skill for writing modern solo piano music, played a concert in the Grunewald Chruch in Berlin and this concert is now available for your listening pleasure – and pleasure is the right word here, even though the melodies are not exactly happy or cheerful, they are deep and warm – in a good way, they make you reflect upon whatever you think about.
I have to admit that I have had a little bit of a hard time finding the right words to describe this music to you – and I still have. It’s easier for me to talk about folk than modern solo piano. But what I can tell you is that the acoustics with the light reverb and hall are perfect to underline the hovering character and the airy, bottomless mood of the compositions. It feels like you are alone in space and surrounded by nothing else than those wonderful silvery notes. Each track on the disc seems to tell a story, but the more you concentrate on its contents the more you get sucked in into a shimmering specter of pure sound – the sounds become colors and you seem to melt in them. But as I said, every track tells you something, every track seems to have a specific structure woven out of successive hollows. Fill in the gaps and you have your story, if you don’t fill in your own thoughts, well that’s ok too, than you can enjoy the crystal clear notes and melodies in the above mentioned color-transformed sense without your thoughts being affected.
Ok, maybe the whole thing got a bit to much metaphorical, let me put it in drier words: Vorleben effectively affects your thoughts with the provided mood coming from each composition, maybe you even feel a bit hazy while reflecting and listening. On the other hand this music can also be enjoyed pure – just the music, no thoughts – then you will find yourself in a world full of crystals and diamonds with no other inherent meaning than just being there.
Overall Vorleben shows again that Sonic Pieces is one of the top German labels combining folk and modern classic/neo-classic and that Dustin O’Halloran can be rightfully considered one outstanding figure in contemporary composition. Therefore Vorleben is one hundred percent worth buying – not at least because of the wonderful packaging which makes every release a collector’s item. So, if you like solo piano/contemporary classic/neo-classic or however you call it and you’re searching for some wonderful instrumental piano music, give this concert a try. To get a copy of the disc, just visit Sonic Pieces, choose your region and order quick (for Sonic Pieces releases are known to sell out very fast). If you like, spend some time on Dustin O’Halloran’s homepage too.
Truely an awesome record! Very touching, very strong. Love it.