the cello in my life Steuart Pincombe

• Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 - 1750): Suite V in C Minor, BWV 1011:
• 1Bach: Suite V in C Minor, BWV 1011: I. Prelude06:50
• 2Bach: Suite V in C Minor, BWV 1011: II. Allemande06:20
• 3Bach: Suite V in C Minor, BWV 1011: III. Courante02:20
• 4Bach: Suite V in C Minor, BWV 1011: IV. Sarabande04:09
• 5Bach: Suite V in C Minor, BWV 1011: V. Gavotte I & II04:51
• 6Bach: Suite V in C Minor, BWV 1011: VI. Gigue03:05
• Domenico Galli (1649 — 1697): Sonata VI in F Major:
• 7Galli: Sonata VI in F Major: I. Adagio01:44
• 8Galli: Sonata VI in F Major: II. Allegro01:39
• 9Galli: Sonata VI in F Major: III. Andante-Vivace00:56
• 10Galli: Sonata VI in F Major: IV. Giga02:10
• Morton Feldman (1926 - 1987): Projection 1:
• 11Feldman: Projection 104:08
• Intersection 4:
• 12Feldman: Intersection 405:26
• Helmut Lachenmann (b.1935): Pression:
• 13Lachenmann: Pression09:23
• Iannis Xenakis (1922 - 2001): Kottos:
• 14Xenakis: Kottos10:51
• Total Runtime01:03:52

Info for the cello in my life

American cellist Steuart Pincombe’s album title the cello in my life betrays the recordings duality: it is at once intimate and completely unabashed. At its core it is a deeply personal album in which the listener is allowed to hear the rawness of Pincombe’s 300-year old instrument, gut strings and all, without the overly polished and unrealistic editing all too typical of modern recordings. Contemporary music fans may recognize the inspiration of this album's title - it comes from Lachenmann’s reference to Feldman’s ‘The Viola in My Life’ - another work that reflects a shift in compositional understanding and output. The album features works by J.S. Bach, Domenico Galli, Morton Feldman, Helmut Lachenmann, and Iannis Xenakis, each displaying Pincombe’s love for the very physical creation of sound in a unique way.

Pincombe has made a name for himself as a leading interpreter of Bach’s cello suites. He begins the cello in my life with a haunting interpretation of the fifth suite that isn’t afraid to wrestle through the vivid agony and quiet despair of the piece. From the very first note - a low C octave at A=385 hertz - the listener knows that Pincombe is completely committed. Few cellists can bridge the worlds of early and contemporary music as effectively or with as much precision as Pincombe. The album finishes with one of the most technically demanding pieces ever written for the cello: Kottos by Iannis Xenakis. Despite its demands, the listener forgets technical skill all together and is simply taken on the wild ride that is Xenakis.

The album was recorded in a 17th century Dutch church under 7 Mountain Records with label owner and producer Frerik de Jong. Pincombe and De Jong first met while working on an album for Pincombe’s contemporary ensemble Oerknal. “Rarely do you get to work with a producer who is so completely tuned in to the music, to each note and phrase, as well as to the musician as a real human being. This is what drew me to Frerik, and why I could trust him in recording such a challenging range of pieces,” says Pincombe.

The cello in my life is being released one year after Pincombe moved to the countryside in southern Missouri to start an off-grid farm with his wife. The move marked a shift of priorities for Pincombe. Now, instead of always being ‘on the road’, he spends more days in his hometown, teaching, preparing his next performances, or digging in the dirt on his farm.

Steuart Pincombe, cello

Steuart Pincombe
The American cellist, Steuart Pincombe, quickly made a name for himself as an exquisite interpreter of early and contemporary music who was keen to experiment. Steuart is regularly featured as a soloist and chamber musician in in leading venues across North America and Europe including Amsterdam Concertgebouw, Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ, Concertgebouw Brugge, RADIALSYSTEM V Berlin, Bozar Brussels, Tivoli Vredenburg, Carnegie Hall, The Kennedy Center, and the Kauffman Center, but he is equally at home playing in your local cafe or brewery. His playing has garnered wide acclaim from the public and critics alike: The Philadelphia Inquirer calls him “a gorgeous player with perfect intonation, imaginative phrasing”, The Strad Magazine refers to him as a “superb soloist”, virtuoso cellist Giovanni Sollima calls Steuart “a complete artist, true virtuoso and poet, totally at ease with all languages and musical styles”, and an audience member once said “You’da asked me a week ago if I’sa gonna be here, I’da said ‘hell no’. Well I’m here - and I love this stuff [Bach]”.

In addition to his numerous chamber engagements, he has appeared as soloist with ensembles such as Solistenensemble Kaleidoskop (DE), Holland Baroque (NL), Wallfisch Band (UK), Symphonie Atlantique (NL), Apollos Fire (US), and the Springfield (MO) Symphony (US). His concert 'Bach&Beer' was selected by the Cleveland Plain Dealer as one of the 'Top 10 Classical Events of the Year' and a concert in which he appeared as soloist with Rene Schiffer and Apollo's Fire was numbered in London's '5 Best Classical Music Moments of 2014' according to The Telegraph (UK). If you can't hear him live, Steuart makes regular appearances on radio and has been featured on BBC, CBC, NPO, and NPR and has recently begun recording for 7 Mountain Records in Amsterdam.

With the aim of equipping other leading artists to engage with new audiences Steuart and his wife Michelle started the Music in Familiar Spaces Artist Collective which is made up of some of the leading performers of our time. Steuart and Michelle recently moved to Missouri (US) to start a small, off-grid farm.

I love sound. I have always loved sound. Silence is also very important to me. I also love people of all kinds and I like introducing them to different combinations of sound (and silence of course).

After dedicating years of my life to learning about how to present the highest quality of sound combinations, some people along the way liked the way in which I combined sounds and encouraged me to pursue this further. Some hired me for presentations of these sound combinations in buildings all over the world, famous for their ability to project various sound combinations to an audience in an extraordinary way.

Over time, I realized that many people who really would like to hear my sound (and silence) combinations were unable, either because it was too expensive or seemed inaccessible, or they just didn't realize that they would like it. So I decided to change my way of presenting sounds (and silences...). One of my primary focuses as a combiner of sounds and silences is to step into spaces where all sorts of people are comfortable, in hopes of connecting with them through sounds and silences. To that end, I created Music in Familiar Spaces, a project that began as a yearlong tour of North America and now continues as a collective of leading artists all across the globe.

This album contains no booklet.