Nigel Kennedy: East meets East (2LP / Double Vinyl)

For Nigel Kennedy, playing a gentle harmonic piece on a priceless antique violin and then swapping to a modern electric instrument and shaking the dust from the rafters is perfectly natural. Here, with this extraordinary record, Kennedy joins forces with the gifted Polish band Kroke to explore the musical roots of Eastern Europe while still injecting his own unique visions. The raw energy and haunting melodies of traditional tunes fascinated old masters such as Vivaldi and Bach, and they fascinate Nigel Kennedy. Vibrant dance material driven almost to a frenzy, ‘One Voice’ is a simple melody played in turn on three instruments by three musicians of three faiths, ‘Lost in Time’ a haunting solo piece describing winter living conditions in a quarter of Poland. Again very real, very personal: Nigel has a home in Poland. This spectacular record is a pure musical landscape capturing all the sunlight and shadows of his life.

1.AdjeJano (4.24)
2.Lullaby for Kamila (3.24)
3. T 4.2 (6.11)
4.Eden (6.06)
5.Dafino (2.51)
6. Jovano Jovanke (4.25)
7.Ederlezi (5.47)
8.Kazimierz (3.28)
9.One Voice (4.54)
10. Tribute to Maria Tanase (3.11)
11.Time 4 Time (5.21)
12.Vino (6.04)
13.Lost in Time (4.22)
14. Kukush (4.42)

Other participants: Kroke Band, Natacha Atlas