“We sometimes seem to be living in the age of wellness, retreats, and spirituality. So how come so many of us feel worn out, empty and restless? Bernhard Wöstheinrich’s new studio album is an attempt at providing relief.
Taking inspiration from the Berlin-based artist’s meditation practise, these immersive compositions were an exercise in whittling his palette down to the bare minimum – and unlearning everything he’d picked up over the years. At the beginning of the creation process, there was a quote by Thich Nhat Hanh, taking from his book The Heart of the Buddha’s Teaching:
‘Calming allows us to rest, and resting is a precondition for healing. Just allow your body and mind to rest like an animal in the forest.’
Wöstheinrich had meditated for years. But for the first time, he felt the need to allow that world to influence his musical decisions: ‘It is almost as if there’s contempt for allowing rest into our lives.’
The aptly titled REST was recorded during a long session with his long-time collaborator Erik Emil Eskildsen. Wöstheinrich was playing nothing but a Fender Rhodes through a long effect-chain live-performed in the studio by Eskildsen. Knowing very little about the instrument, he quickly learned there was a remarkable overlap with his intentions:
‘The instrument’s developer Harold Rhodes had been in the army during World War II and whitnessed its devastating effects on the human body and psyche,’ he explains,’ Back home in the USA, he started giving piano lessons to fellow soldiers. His electric piano was smaller and lighter than a piano and pressing the keys required less force. Rhodes recommended soldiers play it in bed, before going to sleep. It was literally a healing instrument.’
Wöstheinrich wasn’t proficient in playing the Rhodes and the way his collaborator Erik Emil Eskildsen was constantly re-shaping his performance meant that neither of them had any definitive idea of what the next moment would sound like. All they could do was surrender to the flow and arrive at the point where real rest begins: The point where you stop worrying.
Which is also the best way to appreciate this mysterious, mesmerizing and occasionally bewildering cosmic ambient album: Don’t worry about the abyss opening up before you – just let go and allow yourself to fall.”
Tobias Fischer, 15questions.net
credits
Bernhard Wöstheinrich: Fender Rhodes
Erik Emil Eskildsen: Effects & Modulations
Mixed, mastered and produced by Erik Emil Eskildsen
Artwork by Bernhard Wöstheinrich
Bernhard Wöstheinrich 