Pablo Ziegler - Solo (2018) [Hi-Res]

Pablo Ziegler, 2018 Grammy Award winner for Best Latin Jazz Album, writes music imbued with Buenos Aires soul. Following up on 2016’s Tango Nuevo with Christopher O’Riley, Pablo Ziegler Solo presents the composer and pianist on his own terms with new arrangements of his nuevo tango works, along with pieces by Juan Carlos Cobián, Alejandro Dolina, and Ziegler’s mentor, Astor Piazzolla. ​

While Ziegler is accustomed to playing his music with orchestra or small ensemble, this new solo program is a natural extension of his love and affinity for his instrument. He remarks, “The piano is a way to have a conversation for me; I express my feelings through piano rather than words. I always hear music in my mind, and the piano has been always accompanied my journey.” Compositions recorded for the first time on Pablo Ziegler Solo include “Alguien sin Nombre,” a dream of an encounter with an unknown true love; and “Nana para un Niño Dormido,” inspired by Georg Büchner’s play Woyzeck. ​

In choosing works by other composers for the project, Ziegler hoped to emphasize the varying sides of his identity, from classical to jazz to nuevo tango. Two works by Piazzolla – “Oblivion” and “Milonga del Ángel” – represent the time in Ziegler’s life when he and Piazzolla were performing together. Ziegler met Alejandro Dolina in the 1980s, and arranged and re-harmonized his piece “El Vals del Duende,” the album’s penultimate track. Juan Carlos Cobián graduated from the same conservatory as Ziegler and is considered the Chopin of Tango music; his “Nostalgias” closes the album. ​

“Releasing this solo piano album is a new chapter of my life as a musician,” says Ziegler. “There is always a first time for everything. This album happened to be one of them.”

"He is cool, understated and makes everything look easy and natural... Just as a really suave tango dancer seems not to move with feet but on wheels, Ziegler skates the keyboard." (The Los Angeles Time)