Gina Schwarz & Multiphonics 8

Way to blue

The Austrian jazz bassist and composer Gina Schwarz - Composer in Residence 2020 & 2021 at the Multiphonics Festival in Cologne - was inspired by the British folk singer, guitarist and composer Nick Drake (1948-1974) in this current programme. He only became a cult star after his untimely death and is now admired and celebrated for the beauty, transparency and depth of his music. Drake's songs - released on three studio albums - are characterised by desperate melancholy as well as tenderly burgeoning hope and were a source of inspiration and starting point for new compositional ideas for Gina Schwarz. Just as Drake has built up his albums in part like a story that becomes a little more transparent and comprehensible with each chapter, this programme can also be interpreted as an independent cycle.
A woodwind section with almost the entire clarinet family, various flutes and a rhythm section present a powerful body of sound. Tension is continuously built up and the soloists are utilised to the full. Melancholy parts, strong melodies, lots of rhythm and some far-out passages form the music, which is good humoured, has depth and is full of vitality.