Beethoven Hammerklavier Conducted by Parallel Lives (2006)

Parallel Lives is, apparently, the programming team of Michael Gardiner and John Latartara, who "attempt to reveal the various ways Beethoven's Hammerklavier could be experienced." The basis for what is heard is a performance of the Beethoven Piano Sonata No. 29 in B flat major, Op. 106 ("Hammerklavier") by pianist Jon Sakata, digitally manipulated by Gardiner and Latartara. The booklet's description of the project's aims is brief and not especially enlightening; the authors say that "a view of the 'musical work' is ... Read More

Parallel Lives is, apparently, the programming team of Michael Gardiner and John Latartara, who "attempt to reveal the various ways Beethoven's Hammerklavier could be experienced." The basis for what is heard is a performance of the Beethoven Piano Sonata No. 29 in B flat major, Op. 106 ("Hammerklavier") by pianist Jon Sakata, digitally manipulated by Gardiner and Latartara. The booklet's description of the project's aims is brief and not especially enlightening; the authors say that "a view of the 'musical work' is documented in all its stages, from discussion to the practice room, recording studio, and concert hall, to its final confrontation with the labyrinthine structures of the software applications that threaten its identity." Although the sonata does seem to dissolve as the performance goes along, that description implies a linear development that does not occur. Rather, the music sticks fairly close to Beethoven at first, with silences and electronic backdrops hovering in the background.... Read Less