Structures of the Heart

December 2, 2009; Los Angeles, CA - From an unexpected meeting on a plane to Oslo, to a recording session in Los Angeles, Georg Faust - principal cellist of the Berlin Philharmonic and jazz pianist Ben Dowling collaborated on a duet improvisation during the Berlin Philharmonic's recent concert tour appearance at Disney Hall.

"We happened to sit next to each other on this flight to Oslo, and got into a conversation about music and life and really hit it off," Dowling said. "I handed Georg one of my recordings, and basically forgot about it, until he emailed me that he would be in town with the Berlin Phil, and that we should get together."

Get together they did. Following a lunch on the Venice Boardwalk, they arranged to "try out" some improvisations with piano and cello the following day. At Dowling's home studio they spent an hour in a spirited and fascinating duet situated in the living room with the ProTools rig running in the adjoining studio. Between the 1703 Italian cello and the 1924 American piano, there was a communication at a very deep level, based around an intention called "Structures of the Heart."

Several movements later, both were unsure if the experiment was successful. Faust continued on holiday to Hawaii, and Dowling to his jazz and gospel gigs. But independently, they concluded that something amazing had in fact transpired. "What is interesting to me, is that Georg does not consider himself an 'improviser' - having lived in the concert music field throughout his life. But I found him to be exemplary in generating ideas and following musical cues - with stunning results," said Dowling. "I also feel a very surprising and stable agreement throughout the improvisation," Faust said.

An understatement indeed.

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Notes: Regarding the Recording

This session is special to me, because it illustrates the Universality of the creative spirit. Here are two individuals who come from different worlds, yet are able to speak a language, exchange ideas and create from the heart. While the music may not appeal to everyone outside of the contemporary-classical world, I do think that they convey a musicality and heart that are really great. I hope you enjoy this music as much as I do.

The session was recorded at 96K/24Bit at full resolution using 3 microphones: 2 414's as stereo room mikes to pick up everything, and a single SoundDeluxe U95 in close proximity to the cello's A string F hole. I used 3 Rane mike pre's that were customized by my good friend This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it (Pacific Innovative Electronics).

The listening versions below are encoded mp3's at 128KBit. If you are into nicer quality, the same files are available in the "Music for You" free downloads area. Just log in and enjoy mp3's at 320KBit. When I get my stuff together, I'll put a CD together that contains all the movements at full bandwidth...

Faust/Dowling - Movement #2 :: Album: Structures of the Heart

Faust/Dowling - Movement #3 :: Album: Structures of the Heart

Faust/Dowling - Movement #4 :: Album: Structures of the Heart