New album from Professor Thomas Simaku

Professor Thomas Simaku has released a new album for the NMC label called SOLO.

The album features the latest recordings in his ‘Soliloquy’ cycle, which he began in 1998.

Thomas’s new album  includes the latest three works of the cycle, namely Soliloquy VII, VIII and IX for clarinet, marimba and trumpet respectively, featuring soloists of Ensemble intercontemporain Jérôme Comte, Aurélien Gignoux and Clément Saunier. The outer works of this triptych incorporate a resonant piano, which acts as an amplifier to the resonating chamber. Included on the release are also two pieces for piano, Catena II and III, performed by Dimitri Vassilakis.

Founded in 1976 by Pierre Boulez, the musicians of the resident ensemble at the Philharmonie de Paris are some of the most highly-regarded soloists in the world. Discussing the album with BBC Music, Thomas explained, ‘The ‘Soliloquy’ pieces are challenging. The idea is to push the bar as far as possible, within reason, to understand what else can be done with these instruments’. You can read the full article here.

Thomas Simaku – Soliloquy VII (2020)

To find out more about SOLO and to order your copy, follow this link.