A selection of recordings made by reductionist composer Ernstalbrecht Stiebler and cellist Tilman Kanitz between 2020 and 2022 and four improvisations with two short pieces by Stiebler.
In 2019, at the age of 85, Ernstalbrecht Stiebler began an improvising duo, himself on piano, with cellist Tilman Kanitz.
What at first glance seems an uncommon move turns out to be a logical continuation of his minimalist compositional style that has been covered extensively on Edition Telemark and other labels. Kanitz, who was trained in classical western music but gathered musical experiences around the world and especially in India, considers his music-making and performance practice a meditative process centering on abstraction. This obviously is a perfect fit for Stiebler, whose music aims to create inner spaces in accordance with his credo that "music is too important to burden it with emotions". Thus it comes as no surprise that their improvisations, which began as private musical conversations in Kanitz' studio, do not exhibit the talkativeness shown by many other improvisers but center around pitch, harmony and the relationships between single notes. This makes them unique even in today's manifold world of improvisational practices and history.
This LP is a selection of recordings made between 2020 and 2022 in Tilman Kanitz' studio in Berlin-Pankow and pairs four improvisations with two short pieces by Stiebler. It is intended as a companion to the CD "The Pankow-Park Sessions Vol. 1" on Another Timbre which features a different selection without overlap.
Ernstalbrecht Stiebler (1934-2024) was a German composer of minimalist and reductionist contemporary music. His name is still most closely associated with his long-time position as radio editor and producer for New Music at the Hessian Broadcasting Corporation (Hessischer Rundfunk), but his own compositional oeuvre—beginning in 1955—has attracted more attention with various concerts and several releases. Having attended the Darmstadt International Summer Courses for New Music from 1958 onwards, Stiebler decided in 1963 to leave serial music behind and instead opt for his own reductionist style built on minimalist structures and repetitions, though not in any way related to the so-called Minimal Music but rather influenced by
Minimalism in visual art. In terms of composers of his time, the closest stylistic relationship that could be drawn is that to
Morton Feldman. Stiebler's approach was best summarized in his own words: “Music is too important to burden it with emotions.”
Tilman Kanitz is a musician, director, producer, and music curator, living in Berlin.
He studied music at the Lübeck, Freiburg and Cologne Universities, and finished his studies at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, under the cellist Eleonore Schoenfeld, and the violinist Midori. Already during his studies, he was invited to perform with established professional groups, in early and contemporary music. He was a principal cellist at opera houses in Germany and Switzerland, and later, Artistic Director of the Berlin music theatre group, Solistenensemble Kaleidoskop. Here, he researched and experimented with innovation in performance practice and presentation, working sonically with classical western music, improvisation, and electronic music.
In his productions, Tilman Kanitz builds sound collages from classical and experimental music, collaborating with musicians, dancers and performers. His stage design centres on abstraction, using light and other ephemeral media as form, to sculpt the space. His works are presented in theatre halls, in museums, and galleries. He also creates site specific works for unique architectures.
