Martin Kohlstedt turns anguish into an art form at Servant Jazz Quarters
The reason became clear, as soon as Kohlstedt came on stage. With his tall, thin frame and raw-boned features, he looked like a novice monk, for whom playing the piano has taken the place of confession. “I need a piece to warm up. I have a problem with people,” he said, with a self-deprecating smile, and immediately one felt a wave of interested sympathy. Then he sat at the stool, bent over the keyboard, and stroked repeatedly at a single key with his left hand. The sound was strangely muffled, as if the piano’s hammers were made of cotton-wool, and it took a while to work out that Kohlstedt had dampened them with adjustable mutes. Then the right hand joined in, fluttering over the keys, conjuring little wisps of melody over restlessly circling patterns, while that repeated note tolled restively.
“Hypnotic” is the first word that comes to hand when trying to describe this music. But it’s not the right one, even though the music’s repetitive patterns and modal harmonies sometimes reminded one of other music often described as hypnotic, from Ryuichi Sakamoto to Einaudi. What sets Kohlstedt apart is the undercurrent of anxiety, and the occasional moments of grandeur embodied in big striding basses and Ravel-like flurries in the right hand, no sooner proffered than snatched away.
At one point, the undercurrent of pathos came right to the surface, when guest singer/songwriter Douglas Dare added a mournful sung lyric over the top of Kohlstedt’s soft-edged swirlings. The lyrics were hard to fathom but the note of anguish was easy to discern.
Only once did Kohlstedt break the mould, with a welcome burst of vamping, quirky humour. But, for the most part, his pieces offered the simplest things, which could have quickly palled, if Kohstedt’s way of playing them hadn’t been so intense. His expressive range may be small, but it’s a smallness with a rich inner glow.
// The Daily Telegraph
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/music/what-to-listen-to/top-best-jazz-folk-concerts-gigs-2018/
07 February 2018 London (GB) - Servant Jazz Quarters
Back to concert list I played a concert at Servant Jazz Quarters in London (United Kingdom) on the 7th of February 2018 — if you were there it would mean a lot to me if you would share your impressions and thoughts and maybe even some pictures with me!
Martin Kohlstedt turns anguish into an art form at Servant Jazz Quarters
The reason became clear, as soon as Kohlstedt came on stage. With his tall, thin frame and raw-boned features, he looked like a novice monk, for whom playing the piano has taken the place of confession. “I need a piece to warm up. I have a problem with people,” he said, with a self-deprecating smile, and immediately one felt a wave of interested sympathy. Then he sat at the stool, bent over the keyboard, and stroked repeatedly at a single key with his left hand. The sound was strangely muffled, as if the piano’s hammers were made of cotton-wool, and it took a while to work out that Kohlstedt had dampened them with adjustable mutes. Then the right hand joined in, fluttering over the keys, conjuring little wisps of melody over restlessly circling patterns, while that repeated note tolled restively.
“Hypnotic” is the first word that comes to hand when trying to describe this music. But it’s not the right one, even though the music’s repetitive patterns and modal harmonies sometimes reminded one of other music often described as hypnotic, from Ryuichi Sakamoto to Einaudi. What sets Kohlstedt apart is the undercurrent of anxiety, and the occasional moments of grandeur embodied in big striding basses and Ravel-like flurries in the right hand, no sooner proffered than snatched away.
At one point, the undercurrent of pathos came right to the surface, when guest singer/songwriter Douglas Dare added a mournful sung lyric over the top of Kohlstedt’s soft-edged swirlings. The lyrics were hard to fathom but the note of anguish was easy to discern.
Only once did Kohlstedt break the mould, with a welcome burst of vamping, quirky humour. But, for the most part, his pieces offered the simplest things, which could have quickly palled, if Kohstedt’s way of playing them hadn’t been so intense. His expressive range may be small, but it’s a smallness with a rich inner glow.
// The Daily Telegraph
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/music/what-to-listen-to/top-best-jazz-folk-concerts-gigs-2018/
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