NEW ALBUM! FM413 CD, Download & Streaming
A high-wire act of jazz virtuosos – Pianist Cornelius Claudio Kreusch and guitarist Joscho Stephan come together as two equal virtuosos, melodists and improvisers for “Highwire”. On the album, they revisit Kreusch’s most important compositions and a few standards.
Cornelius Claudio Kreusch has long been one of the outstanding jazz pianists with his own personal style. The long-time New York resident has proven his exceptional status on many albums with greats such as Kenny Garrett, Terri Lyne Carrington, Bobby Watson, Herbie Hancock and Salif Keïta, but also in the premier class of solo piano. When he saw a video of guitarist Joscho Stephan’s duo with the great Biréli Lagrène, it was clear to him that he had to play with him: “I could immediately imagine us harmonizing like the duo Toots Thielemans and Martial Solal, which I had in mind as inspiration.”
Joscho Stephan is not only known for his outstanding virtuosity on the acoustic guitar, he also stands for a young, new, cross-style approach in the genre of gypsy swing. Stephan continues Django Reinhardt’s legacy in the spirit of improvisation and innovation. This is underlined by his collaboration with jazz stars as diverse as Paquito D’Rivera, James Carter, Charlie Mariano, Stochelo Rosenberg and Tommy Emmanuel.
Kreusch’s guiding idea for the joint album was to recreate the most important and personal compositions of his career in this encounter. And so, on “Highwire”, Kreusch and Stephan throw the ball to each other in an astonishingly artistic, fast-paced, original and highly musical manner. There are three shared preferences that make this duo sound as if they have been playing together for years: Their roots in a strong rhythm, their love of melodyand their love of improvisation.
Stream here:
Cornelius Claudio Kreusch & Joscho Stephan – Highwire
Our shop:
Listen to our new releases on Spotify with this link: