Swiss Radio Days Jazz Series Vol. 49: Alter Ego - Lausanne 2022

"The idea was simple. Rededicate the two newly overhauled Steinway D pianos in the legendary Studio15 at RTS-Radio Télévision Suisse in Lausanne. After a concert broadcast presenting fteen piano duets, another idea took hold; to produce a special recording session with a single pianist, faced with the difcult task of playing duets with previously recorded tracks of him-or herself. To add a bit of “tension” to the affair, we decided to make this moment a “live” studio recording with forty spectators who would be close to the action, listening with head-phones to the here-and-now pianist playing a spontaneous duet simultaneously with his previ-ously-recorded alter ego. What remained was to nd that rare pearl, a pianist with enough poetry, audacity and creativity to make a project which would inevitably draw comparisons to the Conversations with Myself of Bill Evans–a legendary project that burst upon the scene in 1963 and was instantly recognized as something new, sensitive, and intimately personal. Enter Marc Copland, the legendary Jazz pianist and composer of our day. His nesse and depth found on Alter Ego, along with his thoughtful delicate approach to the instrument make this recording sublime. This is a must have for every jazz enthusiast’s library. "