New Romantics

Good pianists are all over the place and it is becoming increasingly hard to distinguish yourself in these competetive times. That's why the public can only benefit from artists that are not only capable of reproducing the great masters or modern composers, but of writing the soundtracks to their lives on their own. Lera Auerbach is one of them, even though her personal pieces are still firmly entrenched in the "New Music"-segment. Oksana Kolesnikova is already pretty close to popular music, with a style that is both soothing and demanding. And then there's Alex Routledge. After recording with his band Mantra and a string of succesful concerts in his native England last year, he decided that it was time to record some of those works the audiences had liked so much and the result is "Falling Forwards", an EP with three tracks. On the one hand, the music moves in directions that could please those listening to "Classic FM" during office hours, being gentle and unobtrusive. On the other hand, there's a clear and exciting hint at Chopin, with delicate melodies and intricate harmonies the basis of each composition. Even though his web-biography sounds a bit like the usual marketing-talk, Alex is neither one of those Pop Idols mixing Bach with cheap beats, nor an underground gourmet wallowing in his uncommercial attitude. Actually, this might finally be the missing link between Mylene Klass (if she were a boy) and Wibi Soerjadi (if he were less aristocratic). So go over to Routledge's homepage and enjoy the classical sound of the future!

Homepage: Alex Routledge