Nils Frahm, Roundhouse
Jump at the chance to see the acclaimed pianist Nil Frahms: Roundhouse 2015 houses the German's enthralling live show.
Nils Frahm, Roundhouse
In 2009, German composer and pianist Nils Frahm released an EP appropriately entitledWintermusik, his first for the Erased Tapes label. Interlacing delicate piano and dampened accordion, Frahm crafted a graceful and moving record, the auditory equivalent of watching snow fall. Since then, Frahm has developed this aesthetic, continuing to imbue glacial soundscapes with startling human warmth.
On subsequent albums The Bells (2009) and Felt (2011), Frahm retained the fragility ofWintermusik, but combined it with greater composure and a more assured use of silence. ‘More’, the closing track on Felt, is a particular highpoint in Frahm’s discography; it begins with a rush of staccato keys, gives way to faltering chords and ends in a wash of undulating synthesisers.
In 2012, Frahm released Screws, perhaps his most minimal and overtly melancholic work. The arrangements are down-tempo, and the production disquietingly clear. Alongside solo releases, Frahm has contributed to a variety of collaborative projects; on Music for Wobbling Music versus Gravity, for instance, he collaborated with guitarist F.S. Blumm to create an alluring and quietly ingenious record.
Frahm plays The Roundhouse on 22 May 2015. His most recent solo release, Spaces (2013), was recorded live and is testament to the pianist’s creativity. As a track entitled ‘Improvisations for Coughs and a Cell Phone’ makes clear, Frahm is a live performer who is interested in responding to the environment in which he is playing. This flexibility, along with the pianist’s beguiling compositions, means that this promises to be a genuinely unique concert.
Frahm plays live in London
On subsequent albums The Bells (2009) and Felt (2011), Frahm retained the fragility ofWintermusik, but combined it with greater composure and a more assured use of silence. ‘More’, the closing track on Felt, is a particular highpoint in Frahm’s discography; it begins with a rush of staccato keys, gives way to faltering chords and ends in a wash of undulating synthesisers.
In 2012, Frahm released Screws, perhaps his most minimal and overtly melancholic work. The arrangements are down-tempo, and the production disquietingly clear. Alongside solo releases, Frahm has contributed to a variety of collaborative projects; on Music for Wobbling Music versus Gravity, for instance, he collaborated with guitarist F.S. Blumm to create an alluring and quietly ingenious record.
Frahm plays The Roundhouse on 22 May 2015. His most recent solo release, Spaces (2013), was recorded live and is testament to the pianist’s creativity. As a track entitled ‘Improvisations for Coughs and a Cell Phone’ makes clear, Frahm is a live performer who is interested in responding to the environment in which he is playing. This flexibility, along with the pianist’s beguiling compositions, means that this promises to be a genuinely unique concert.
Frahm plays live in London
TRY CULTURE WHISPER
Receive free tickets & insider tips to unlock the best of London — direct to your inbox