musicAddicted

It’s impressive how much inner tense and gradation can be packed into one single composition which was performed with no plan, no score, no training. It may be a document of great talent; or a statement of unceasing urge within creative mind; or a symbol of inner darkness and uneasiness. Black 6, the outstanding peak of a collaboration between pianist Volker Bertelmann, better known as Hauschka and Icelandic cellist Hildur Guðnadóttir, is pretty much everything of these speculations and even much more. The thrill present in the first touch of bow on the string suggests an evolution of darkness; the subsequent layered drill of the same bow just confirms the initial suspicion. Hildur builds one motive over another and creates a thick, air-tight mass of sound which leaves a space just for a repetitive insisting piano accords mixed with a hits by a percussion sounding prepared piano. This mass rises for six minutes full of variations, tiny twists and repeated appeals for mercy. Black 6 doesn’t collapse to uncover its inner beauty; Guðnadóttir and Hauschka release the tense patiently to unveil that talent and chemistry are not enough. Spontaneity and emotional devotion to music win. And so do we – their audience.

Hear another piece, #294 from their live album Pan Tone which is out on magnificent Sonic Pieces.