Montreal-based composer Jean-Michel Blais has announced plans for a new solo piano EP to accompany his excellent 2022 album aubades. sérénades arrives March 10 through Arts & Crafts.
"This EP is the length of the recommended nap: 25 to 30 minutes," Blais said of the forthcoming eight-track effort, which reworks key songs from aubades in addition to compiling three new works.
He continued: "To be honest, I've never been able to listen to this EP without drifting into sleep. I normally try and make my music play with your attention by constantly introducing new elements. But with this EP I was thinking about music of the night. It's not meant to distract you and keep you alert. Please fall asleep to it."
Billed as a "nocturnal companion," the record's original material is led by "la chute," which Blais composed as a song played solely by the left hand after he injured his right arm. "There was a moment there where I thought it was just finished for me as a pianist. It was quite a dark place which is why the song is not that happy," he recalled.
The musician continued:
In the emergency room, they gave me morphine and ketamine, putting me in a state where I was completely disconnected from reality. My boyfriend had this denim coat with a woollen collar, and for some reason, I started dreaming about sheep in the alps, a shepherd, and the sheep's wool becoming clouds as I drifted into the sky. And suddenly there was Maurice Ravel who suddenly appeared on his own little cloud.
When I came back to reality, the dream reminded me of this piece that Ravel wrote for his friend who lost his right arm in the First World War. So then, for fun, I just started playing with what remained (my left hand) and I composed "la chute."
For now, you can watch a performance video for "amour (piano)" below, where you can also see the album's tracklisting.
Blais is due to perform Toronto's 21C Music Festival on January 20.
sérénades:
1. 117 (bach)
2. amour (piano)
3. la chute
4. morning (improv)
5. flâneur (piano)
6. yanni (piano)
7. ouessant (piano)
8. murmures (piano)
"This EP is the length of the recommended nap: 25 to 30 minutes," Blais said of the forthcoming eight-track effort, which reworks key songs from aubades in addition to compiling three new works.
He continued: "To be honest, I've never been able to listen to this EP without drifting into sleep. I normally try and make my music play with your attention by constantly introducing new elements. But with this EP I was thinking about music of the night. It's not meant to distract you and keep you alert. Please fall asleep to it."
Billed as a "nocturnal companion," the record's original material is led by "la chute," which Blais composed as a song played solely by the left hand after he injured his right arm. "There was a moment there where I thought it was just finished for me as a pianist. It was quite a dark place which is why the song is not that happy," he recalled.
The musician continued:
In the emergency room, they gave me morphine and ketamine, putting me in a state where I was completely disconnected from reality. My boyfriend had this denim coat with a woollen collar, and for some reason, I started dreaming about sheep in the alps, a shepherd, and the sheep's wool becoming clouds as I drifted into the sky. And suddenly there was Maurice Ravel who suddenly appeared on his own little cloud.
When I came back to reality, the dream reminded me of this piece that Ravel wrote for his friend who lost his right arm in the First World War. So then, for fun, I just started playing with what remained (my left hand) and I composed "la chute."
For now, you can watch a performance video for "amour (piano)" below, where you can also see the album's tracklisting.
Blais is due to perform Toronto's 21C Music Festival on January 20.
sérénades:
1. 117 (bach)
2. amour (piano)
3. la chute
4. morning (improv)
5. flâneur (piano)
6. yanni (piano)
7. ouessant (piano)
8. murmures (piano)
