Relaxing Music For Reading

Marco Lucchi, based in Modena, Italy, and Henrik Meierkord, based in Stockholm, Sweden, have a lengthy collaboration to their reciprocal credit, and they accomplish it far and near alike. A testament to the interplay of their work together is that a listener might be hard-pressed to discern which of their recordings are the result of long-distance file-trading, and which occurred when the two managed to be in the same place at the same time.

Several aspects of their respective music-making serve them well as creative partners. First of all, both tend toward the ambient, given as they are generally to a slow pace and to a sensibility that manages to be at once radiant and intimate. Secondly, while both are multi-instrumentalists, there is a complementary nature to their specialties, Lucchi being more of a keyboardist, Meierkord more of a string player. Thirdly, and perhaps most importantly, they are both immersed in techniques drawn from electronic music.

In particular, both men are experienced with live multitrack recording, in which they process and layer their own performances in real time. Meierkord is fond of layering sinuous tones to create scenarios of unique dimensions. It becomes uncertain — even unimportant — to the listener what preceded what, so intricate is his deployment of interplay. Lucchi likewise finds parallels between classical orchestration and the opportunity for drones lent by modern synthesizers; in a small room he can create a vast space. There is often an oceanic depth to such efforts, part composed and part improvisatory, in which playing is a tool toward composition, rather than the other way around.

Throughout their new record, there is an underlying melancholy, a nostalgic beauty, and a reflective consideration — a virtue that is foundational to their ongoing collaboration. The result is particularly rich in plaintive scene setting, as on the glacially paced “La bestia umana,” which emerges from a neighborly field recording of a dog barking, and “Kosmisk Strålning II,” which maintains a dream-like quietude, more shadow than light. One “Like tears in rain”, what sounds like a synthesizer is, in fact, a piano, a recording of which has been stretched beyond the point of it being readily identifiable.

On first listen, their leaning toward unimpeachable steadiness can seem uniform, but listen more closely and you’ll recognize how explicitly they emote on a track like “The Third Stage,” due not just to the reaching melodic surges (which, in turn, match the sampled recordings of bird calls) but to the slight discordances that suggest trouble and tension. In a different manner, there is “A warm and golden October,” which balances breaking-dawn hush with piercing overtones. That track features a motif at the end, played on a celesta; those bell-like tones edge the piece out of dreaminess without entirely breaking the spell.

The greatest outlier — dog barking notwithstanding — may be on “Oändlig,” not just for its fierce pulse, but because of its more immediately electronic vibe. “Oändlig” is an exceptional piece, bringing to mind the minimalism of Terry Riley and the rave classics of Underworld.

Marc Weidenbaum 


Produced and mixed by Marco Lucchi and Henrik Meierkord
Marco Lucchi: mellotron, piano, celesta and synthesizers
Henrik Meierkord: cello, viola, zither, piano, organ and FX
Mastered by Dionis Afonichev (Dionisaf)
Cover picture by Dionis Afonichev (Dionisaf) with AI
Artwork and cover design by Dionis Afonichev (Dionisaf)

https://www.chitrarecords.com

Lieder Ohne Worte

In A Gadda Da Vida

immersion

surfacing

"Your heart it ain't broken / It's just a little cracked / It's a delicate thing / But it soon bounces back" Kind of a ballad on heartbreak or heartache or whatever you want to call it, for all the tragic romantics out there... 

Your Heart's Not Broken

Moon Phase (Ambient)

Sunrise

Boundless

A city is often a cacophonous space. Of course, cacophony comes in many forms. The roar of the ocean can feel cacophonous, as can the intensity of surrounding bug life in the wild. The cacophony of the city is unique from those other forms because the noise comes not from manifest dense uniformity but from myriad distinct, often unidentifiable sources acting as if at once. All this was running through my mind as I stood on a corner in San Francisco listening as hotel workers were engaged in a lively strike halfway down the block. The noise of their activity joined with that of passing foot and automobile traffic to create something that was at once noisier than a normal Thursday afternoon, and yet also that perpetuated the city’s ability to absorb all sounds into one sound. No matter the sounds, it was the sound of the city.

(The image is a reworking of a public domain photo via Wikipedia of a 1956 strike.)

A Subsumed Cacophony

Three miniatures for piano and cello. My first project, containing music made to produce images

1. Breath

Respiro 5

From Where We Came

Experience the soothing embrace of "Whispers of the Piano III - Keep Me Quiet": A touching collection of piano solo pieces that blend modern classical impressionism with atmospheric and calming melodies. These acoustic instrumentals invite you into a world of serene and melodic beauty, filled with bittersweet and sentimental emotions. Let the soft and soothing tones quiet your mind and take you on a heartfelt journey through sound.

Whispers Of The Piano III - Keep Me Quiet

Memories of You

"Le Programme" is a neoclassical piano piece composed, performed and recorded by Karen Biehl.

Le Programme

Initially composed and recorded around 2002 in New Malden by Richard Anthony Bean, now brought back to life with Paul Landry adding wonderful Gilmour-esque electric guitar.  The track formed around samples taken from sleep recordings which illusionist Simon Drake gave permission for Richard to utilise in a composition.

Richard: Korg 01/W, Emu ESi-32, Novation Bass Station, Roland XP-30

Paul: Gibson Epiphone electric guitar

Addition keyboard overdubs recorded in Devon 2022 by Richard Anthony Bean.

Richard -
► Facebook - www.facebook.com/rabeanmusic
► Instagram - www.instagram.com/rabeanmusic
► YouTube - www.youtube.com/@richardanthonybean
► Bandcamp - https://www.richardanthonybean.bandcamp.com/

Paul
► www.paulssounds.com/
► itunes.apple.com/us/artist/paul-landry/id287800079
► www.youtube.com/channel/UC4oiRhX2e51zhvzHQwmVt0A
► https://paullandrymusic.bandcamp.com/

Natural Progression EP

Sleep Talker

Sleep Talker ft. Paul Landry

2025 Piano - B9onD - Hard Echo

piece by piece 8.23.25

The first in Erik Satie's acclaimed Gnossienne trilogy.

Satie Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Erik-Satie-Essential-Collection/dp/B00J0LBFIG/

Satie iTunes
https://music.apple.com/gb/album/erik-satie-the-essential-collection/918615441

Best of Satie
https://play.google.com/store/music/album?id=Bditbkfgfdqvxx7hansrl6qhy4y

Satie Compilation
https://open.spotify.com/album/0vzKMInu4PzU2Qyi6NgmRK

Erik Satie Album
https://www.deezer.com/us/album/7540311

Best of Satie Playlist
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mk2SNcpTNbs&t=68s

Boundless

Michael Logozar

Related tracks