WATCH THE TRAILER HERE
The new recording captures the pianists’ special artistic relationship with Philip Glass – a follow-up to the Double Piano Concerto the composer dedicated to the sisters in 2015
Album includes new piano arrangement Les Enfants Terribles and Etudes No. 17 & 20
Katia & Marielle Labèque are known for the boundless energy of their duet performances, enjoying a global career performing both classical repertoire and new commissions. After working with Olivier Messiaen, Luciano Berio, György Ligeti, Pierre Boulez, they continue to create works written specifically for them by the likes of Louis Andriessen, Philip Glass, Bryce Dessner, Thom Yorke and Nico Muhly.
Philip Glass chose to adapt his opera Les Enfants Terribles, based on Jean Cocteau’s novel, especially for theLabèques, for whom he previously dedicated hisDouble Concerto for Two Pianos. The resulting suite for piano duet was arranged by Michael Riesman, Glass’s longtime collaborator. Visuals to support this album have been created by multi-media artist and filmmaker Ronan Day-Lewis.
Statement from Katia & Marielle Labèque:
“We met Philip Glass for the first time a few days before the world premiere of his Double Piano Concerto. He knew our albums, in particular our recording of his ‘Four Movements for Two Pianos’ on the album Minimalist Dream House released in 2013, saw our videos and had expressed the wish to write a concerto for us. Last year we participated in the complete cycle of his Piano Etudes at the Philharmonie in Paris, in his presence. Two of his Etudes have been recorded on this album.
Our conversations often referenced Philip’s opera Les Enfants Terribles based on Jean Cocteau’s novel. Philip had asked Michael Riesman, his longtime collaborator and arranger, to adapt it for us for piano duet.
Then came the lockdown in spring 2020 along with the cancellation of all our projects and concerts. We have been confined with a lot of free time. This was the opportunity to dive into the first score Michael sent us. After hours of listening to the opera recording, we made a selection of pieces which seemed important to us as they present different aspects of Philip’s work. Michael immediately reworked the suite adding our selection and sent us the new score. At the end of the lockdown we found ourselves in David Chalmin’s studio to work on and record the album in which the work of Jean Cocteau and Philip Glass confront each other. [The album has been] visually imagined by Ronan Day-Lewis who deeply connects the subject of two lost souls isolated in the creation of their world.”