When it comes to permanently shifting genre boundaries, breaking new musical ground and bringing contemporary music into completely new forms, there’s no getting around this exciting project: Katia & Marielle Labèque, Bryce Dessner and David Chalmin bring a program on tour that could hardly be more exciting and contemporary: in addition to style-defining and visionary icons such as Thom Yorke or Sufjan Stevens, the program also includes legends such as contemporary composers Meredith Monk, Philip Glass or Steve Reich. And of course, Chalmin and Dessner’s own compositions are also included to round off the evening-long program.
The individual musicians draw on decades of musical expertise: the pianists Katia and Marielle Labèque are considered luminaries on the piano and have always felt just as at home in classical music as in minimal music, jazz or pop music. The two sisters are joined by Grammy-winning guitarist, composer and founding member of The National Bryce Dessner – whose new album Solos is about to be released in August – and composer, musician and producer David Chalmin, also on guitar.
The quartet presented their first joint project back in 2019 under the name The Minimalist Dream House – in reference to the Labèque sisters’ 2013 album of the same name. The premiere at the Philharmonie in Paris and the subsequent tour through Lyon, London and the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg was attended by none other than Thom Yorke, lead singer of Radiohead, himself. The second half of this project was also dedicated to the world premiere of Yorke’s composition don’t fear the light and another new song, gawpers. These two pieces were Yorke’s first compositions ever and thus impressively underline the status that the four musicians enjoy in the scene.
A first joint EP followed in 2023: the Dream House Quartet EP with works by David Chalmin, Meredith Monk and Bryce Dessner was released by Deutsche Grammophon in April.
Another album awaits us in 2024 – Sonic Wires will also be released by Deutsche Grammophon in October – as well as the next tour. Three dates will bring the quartet to the most beautiful halls in Germany: the Chamber Music Hall of the Philharmonie Berlin, the Grand Hall of the Elbphilharmonie and the Kölner Philharmonie.
Katia & Marielle Labèque, Bryce Dessner and David Chalmin: Sonic Wires
Monday, 4.11.2024
Philharmonie Berlin | Herbert-von-Karajan-Strasse 1 in 10785 Berlin
