STEVEN WHITTINGTON - Final Fragments: Piano Music of David Kotlowy LP

FINAL FRAGMENTS is the first album dedicated to the music of quiet revolutionary David Kotlowy, and surveys his piano music from the early 90’s to the 00’s.

Kotlowy’s music is often extremely delicate, sometimes straddles the threshold of audibility, and creates pregnant silences, producing a maximum effect from a limited amount of material. Among the selections on this record are examples of his gorgeous and original ‘breath pieces’, in which the duration of musical notes and gestures are determined exclusively by the performer’s unhurried breathing. Lovers of Jürg Frey and Morton Feldman will find much on this album to appreciate.

Stephen Whittington’s performances of new piano music have long been celebrated worldwide, but until now he has been extremely elusive on disc. Since the 1970’s, he has shaped the development of new music in Australia by giving the first local performances of works by David Kotlowy, Morton Feldman, George Crumb, Cornelius Cardew, James Tenney, Peter Garland, Howard Skempton, and many other contemporary composers. De la Catessen proudly presents his first commercial album as solo pianist.

“Radically beautiful, and perhaps, most of all, radically human (...) Throughout, I am struck by the music’s poetics, its capacity to still the moment, and its ability to balance rigour of praxis with gentleness of touch” - Jon Dale