Carlos Cipa

His third album Retronyms sees Carlos Cipa bring together his background as a classically trained pianist and composer with his interest for experimental forms and pop music. After numerous live performances throughout the years, a slew of collaborations and, amongst others, works for film and theatre performances, he invited different musicians in his Munich studio to record of the eight pieces. On Retronyms, improvisation goes hand in hand with the high art of composition while acoustic (and partly unusual) instruments like the celesta meet with electronic production methods or analogue synthesizers. Between the avant-garde aesthetics of the opener fanfare to the orchestral senna’s joy and the closing improvisational piece paon, Cipa proves to have radically expanded his approach as a composer. Each note on this album is meticulously thought through and yet Retronyms radiates with visceral liveliness.