The Squid's Ear Magazine


Niggenkemper, Pascal: Look With Thine Ears (Clean Feed)

Ever-active bassist Pascal Niggenkemper in his first solo album of riveting and intriguing double bass work, from aggressive to contemplative and immersive improvisations using work using bass preparations to transform the instrument and make us rethink its potential.
 

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Pascal Niggenkemper-doublebass


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UPC: 5609063003246

Label: Clean Feed
Catalog ID: CF324
Squidco Product Code: 20347

Format: CD
Condition: New
Released: 2015
Country: Portugal
Packaging: Cardboard Gatefold
Recorded at Lacsap Studio, Brooklyn, NY in 2014.

Descriptions, Reviews, &c.

"And here it is, finally, the much expected solo recording of double bassist Pascal Niggenkemper titled 'look with thine ears'. Everything we heard from him leading groups such as vision7, Upcoming Hurricane, PNTrio, 'le 7ème continent', collaborating with baloni and PascAli as well as being a member of Gerald Cleaver's Black Host, Thomas Heberer's Clarino, Cooper Moore Trio and the Nate Wooley / David Rempis Quartet, made us dream of the opportunity to hear him SOLO.

Why is he so special? Well, because Niggenkemper is part of a rare number of bass players who prepare their instruments, being maybe the one who goes further doing it, because he has one of the most beautiful and personal sounds around and also because he has an endless vocabulary for the lower-sounding variant of the violin family, creating entire worlds and soundscapes. Living in New York, and being part of the rich scene of the Big Apple, this German-French virtuoso is undoubtedly one of the most important masters of the bass language in activity. Don't you know him yet? Well, this is the best opportunity to discover him."-Clean Feed


Artist Biographies

"New York City-based German-French bassist, composer and improviser Pascal Niggenkemper is a performing and recording artist active on the creative music scene in the US and in Europe.

From 1999-2005 he was musicaly active in Cologne having studied jazz & classical double bass at the Hochschule für Musik. In 2005 he received the DAAD award and moved to New York.

From 2008 to 2010 Pascal led the PNTrio with Tyshawn Sorey and Robin Verheyen. (CD "pasàpas" Konnex 2008 & "urban creatures" JazzHausMusik 2010). The trio toured extensively in Europe performing at the Jazzcologne Festival, Jazzherbst Konstanz and at the Kennedy Center in Washington. Recordings for the WDR and the BR Radio.

In cooperation with Jazzdor Strasbourg-Berlin, Pascal formed the septet vision7 that performed at Jazzdor Strasbourg-Berlin, Vive le Jazz in Cologne, Jazz à la Cité in Paris and at the Pori Jazz in Finland. (CD 'Lucky Prime' clean feed records Sept 2013)

In September 2011 Pascal released with Simon Nabatov and Gerald Cleaver the CD/LP upcoming hurricane on NoBusiness Records which is listed among 'Albums of the year' 2011 in the 'The New York City Jazz Record'. The trio performed in Canada and the USA.

He recently recorded a new solo program called: 'look with thine ears' music for bass & preparations was premiered at the Jazzdor Festival in Strasbourg in November 2013. The CD was released in March 2015 on clean feed records. He performed for the France Musique radio broadcast by Anne Montaron called 'a l'improviste'.

In 2014 he presented the double trio 'le 7eme continent' with the program 'talking trash' at the Vive le Jazz festival in Cologne, Germany and the concert was broadcast by WDR3 radio. Their CD was released in May 2016 on clean feed records and the group performed in France, Belgium and Germany.

Pascal is co-leading the groups baloni with Frantz Loriot viola and Joachim Badenhorst clarinets (CD 'fremdenzimmer' 2011, 'Belleke' 2014 & 'Ripples' 2015 clean feed records) PascAli a duo for two prepared basses with Sean Ali (CD 'suspicious activity' creative sources 2012) and Miner's Pick with Thomas Heberer. (CD 'miner's pick' FMR records 2014)

With friends, he curates in NY the house concert series ze couch, where every month artists meet to present their work.

Festival presence includes: Jazzdor Strasbourg-Berlin, Vision Festival New York, Umbrella Festival Chicago, Banlieues Bleues Paris, Strade del Cinema Aosta, météo Mulhouse, Jazzcologne, JIGG Lisbon, Taktlos Zurich, Jazz à la Cité in Paris, ESCUCHA Madrid, Washington DC Jazz Festival, Pori Jazz Festival, Middelheim Antwerp, Grenzenlos Köln, undead Jazzfest NYC, D'Jazz Nevers, NewAdits Klagenfurt, Font New York, Music Unlimited Wels, Vive le Jazz Cologne, GONG Aarau, Konfrontationen Nickelsdorf, Ljubljana Jazz Festival etc...

He received the following scholarships/grants: DAAD, Henry Mancini Institute, North Rhine-Westphalia composition stipend."

-Pascal Niggenkemper Website (http://www.pascalniggenkemper.com/bio_english.html)
3/13/2024

Have a better biography or biography source? Please Contact Us so that we can update this biography.


Track Listing:



1. Look With Thine Ears 3:17

2. This Shall Not Be Revoked 5:51

3. If You Marry Me, Make Your Love To Me 3:31

4. Men Of Stone 5:03

5. At Fortune's Alms 4:34

6. Let Me Kiss Your hand 2:45

7. Let Me Wipe It First, It Smells Of Mortality 3:14

8. Unpublished Virtues Of The Earth 4:36

9. Sharper Then A Serpent's Tooth 2:26

10. Blow Wind And Crack Your Cheeks 5:43

11. Let The Fork Invade The Region Of My Heart 4:29

12. Let Me Still Remain The True Blank Of Thine Eye 3:42

13. Track 13 6:13

Related Categories of Interest:


Improvised Music
Free Improvisation
NY Downtown & Metropolitan Jazz/Improv
Solo Artist Recordings
Stringed Instruments
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Clean Feed

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