The National's Bryce Dessner recently teamed up with chamber outfit Kronos Quartet for a collaborative album, and now he's announced another joint project: a split album with Radiohead's Jonny Greenwood. This will be out on March 3 through Deutsche Grammophon/Universal Classics.
This releases highlights the two guitarists' classical compositions, rather than their rock material. Dessner's half includes three pieces: 2011's St. Carolyn by the Sea is a orchestral work featuring his brother Aaron — also of the National — on guitar; Lachrimae comes from 2012; and Raphael is one of Dessner's early orchestral pieces, dating back to 2007.
These were performed with with the Copenhagen Phil and conducted by André de Ridder. They all clock in at 13 minutes or more. Bryce plays guitar on St. Carolyn by the Sea and Raphael.
As for Greenwood, he offers up a six-part suite from his score to the 2007 film There Will Be Blood. See the full tracklist below. As you can see, Dessner's pieces take up the first three sides of the double vinyl, while Greenwood's suite is on the fourth side.
In a statement, Dessner said, "For any classical musician who's been born since 1960, the music of the era around them is popular music. You find that in many variations: former rock musicians who end up going the classical route, or very academic composers who are perhaps re-setting a text by Bob Dylan. You find all kinds of various strands of this. Someone like myself or Jonny Greenwood, we're actually part of a new generation of composers where our education, our background, our interests are so diverse that you can't really say 'oh, that's a guy from a rock band who writes classical music.' You should say the opposite: Jonny Greenwood was a classical violist who became a guitarist with Radiohead. But the music he's interested in is still Penderecki and Ligeti."
The tracklist is below, and the album can be pre-ordered here.
Thanks to Pitchfork for the tip.
Bryce Dessner:
1. St. Carolyn by the Sea
2. Lachrimae
3. Raphael
Jonny Greenwood:
4. "Open Spaces"
5. "Future Markets"
6. "HW/Hope of New Fields"
7. "Henry Plainview"
8. "Proven Lands"
9. "Oil"
This releases highlights the two guitarists' classical compositions, rather than their rock material. Dessner's half includes three pieces: 2011's St. Carolyn by the Sea is a orchestral work featuring his brother Aaron — also of the National — on guitar; Lachrimae comes from 2012; and Raphael is one of Dessner's early orchestral pieces, dating back to 2007.
These were performed with with the Copenhagen Phil and conducted by André de Ridder. They all clock in at 13 minutes or more. Bryce plays guitar on St. Carolyn by the Sea and Raphael.
As for Greenwood, he offers up a six-part suite from his score to the 2007 film There Will Be Blood. See the full tracklist below. As you can see, Dessner's pieces take up the first three sides of the double vinyl, while Greenwood's suite is on the fourth side.
In a statement, Dessner said, "For any classical musician who's been born since 1960, the music of the era around them is popular music. You find that in many variations: former rock musicians who end up going the classical route, or very academic composers who are perhaps re-setting a text by Bob Dylan. You find all kinds of various strands of this. Someone like myself or Jonny Greenwood, we're actually part of a new generation of composers where our education, our background, our interests are so diverse that you can't really say 'oh, that's a guy from a rock band who writes classical music.' You should say the opposite: Jonny Greenwood was a classical violist who became a guitarist with Radiohead. But the music he's interested in is still Penderecki and Ligeti."
The tracklist is below, and the album can be pre-ordered here.
Thanks to Pitchfork for the tip.
Bryce Dessner:
1. St. Carolyn by the Sea
2. Lachrimae
3. Raphael
Jonny Greenwood:
4. "Open Spaces"
5. "Future Markets"
6. "HW/Hope of New Fields"
7. "Henry Plainview"
8. "Proven Lands"
9. "Oil"
