Album: Zahra Fugues
Author: Frans de Waard
Publication: Vital Weekly (source)
Date: 12/28/2009

The fugue is a music form in which the counterpoint and a varied repetition play a main part, well, or along those lines. I never got beyond playing a chord on the piano, but Rothkamm knows his ways with the 88 keys. 'Zahra Fugues' is the second album in the 'Tetralogy' series and its his first all acoustic release since his 'Chamber Ensemble' in 1984. Just Rothkamm and the piano. Yes, this man is always your man for something weird. I must admit my knowledge of classical music is really limited, even when I recognize the names Rothkamm mentions, such as Glenn Gould, Conlon Nancarrow, Anton Webern and one J.S. Bach (oh no, he's not mentioned), but its too hard for me to say if these fugues are great or absolute bullshit. Like with say video-art or literature (two things that for reasons unknown also make their way into the Vital Weekly HQ) this is a territory where I have not much knowledge. I must say I quite enjoyed this release. Maybe twenty-six of these uptempo piano pieces, although they are short, is a bit too much, its excellent music to wake up with. Not too heavy, not too difficult, but in a good tempo to wake up by. Rothkamm's usual scheme of electronic music is however, perhaps more spend on me.

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