Hauschka

Some composers may be marked by their desire for complete control over their work, but not Volker Bertelmann. The artist better known as Hauschka deliberately seeks spontaneity in his live performances through the use of prepared piano, a technique that more or less involves Bertelmann emptying the contents of a junk drawer onto the strings of his instrument. Bertelmann’s latest recorded work, Foreign Landscapes, pairs his piano pieces with the string and wind instruments of the Magik*Magik Orchestra, but he’s just as capable of creating the sounds of a full ensemble on his own. Leave Bertelmann with some ping-pong balls and aluminum foil, and his contemporary classical compositions take on mesmerizing—and unpredictable—percussive and melodic qualities.

Updated 01/19/2011