Zoforbit: A Space Odyssey ZOFO Duet

• Urmas Sisask (1960-): Sonata for Piano 4 Hands, Op. 24, 'The Milky Way'
• 1 I. - 07:37
• 2 II. - 03:57
• 3 I. Mars, the Bringer of War 06:41
• 4 II. Venus, the Bringer of Peace 06:42
• 5 III. Mercury, the Winged Messenger 03:46
• 6 IV. Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity 07:27
• 7 V. Saturn, the Bringer of Old Age 07:42
• 8 VI. Uranus, the Magician 05:34
• 9 VII. Neptune, the Mystic 05:56
• 10 I. Alpha Centauri 03:58
• 11 II. Beta Cygni 04:56
• 12 Gravity 05:08
• Total Runtime 01:09:24

Info for Zoforbit: A Space Odyssey

In this third album from GRAMMY® nominated ensemble ZOFO, the critically acclaimed piano duo takes the listener on a metaphorical exploration of the galaxy with mesmerizing, outer space-themed duet works by four noted composers of the 20th and 21st centuries - Gustav Holst, George Crumb, David Lang and Urmas Sisask preformed on one piano - four hands.

Since joining forces as a professional duo in 2009, Eva-Maria Zimmermann and Keisuke Nakagoshi - ZOFO - have electrified audiences from Carnegie Hall to Osaka, Japan with their dazzling artistry and outside-the-box thematic programming for piano-four-hands. This prize winning Steinway Artist ensemble - one of only a handful of duos worldwide devoted exclusively to piano duets - is blazing a bold new path for piano-four-hands groups by focusing on 20th and 21st century repertoire and by commissioning new works from noted composers each year.

ZOFO’s debut album MIND MELD, released by Sono Luminus in April, 2012, received a 2013 GRAMMY® Award nomination in the category of Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance. MOSH PIT, ZOFO’s second release, put the duo’s considerable keyboard skills to the test in exciting, high energy, evocative dance-themed duets from an all American group of noted 20th century composers.

ZOFORBIT, ZOFO’s third album with Sono Luminus, takes the listener on an intragalactic voyage through the Milky Way, with musical visits to the planets of our solar system, to bright stars of the galaxy, and back again. Estonian composer Urmas Sisask sets the mood with the other-worldly sounds of his composition The Milky Way, featuring innovative inside and outside the piano techniques that evoke a sense of the cosmos. The journey continues with a tour of Gustav Holst’s The Planets, and visits to the stars Alpha Centauri and Beta Cygni as musically envisioned by George Crumb in his one-piano-four-hands masterpiece Celestial Mechanics (Makrokosmos IV). The space exploration concludes with David Lang’s Gravity, which metaphorically coaxes the listener back to earth in slow-moving patterns of descending notes.

Keisuke Nakagoshi, piano
Eva-Maria Zimmermann, piano

Eva-Maria Zimmermann
Dynamic Swiss pianist Eva-Maria Zimmermann maintains a robust career in Europe and the United States, offering performances that are "breathtakingly intense" (Der Bund) and "passionate and deeply expressive" (Berner Oberlander). Her solo appearances involve recitals as well as concerto performances with major symphonies, including the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande.

Winner of the prestigious Rotary International Ambassadorial Scholarship, Ms. Zimmermann has appeared at international festivals worldwide, including the “Festival Piano en Saintonge” France, the “Sommerfestspiele Murten” Switzerland, and San Francisco's “Other Minds Festival of New Music." A graduate with highest honors from the Conservatory of Geneva, Eva-Maria has studied with many distinguished musicians - Leon Fleisher, György Sebök, Leonard Hokanson, Tomasz Herbut and Dominique Merlet, among others.

Ms. Zimmermann is a musician of broad interests. In addition to her solo appearances, she is dedicated to chamber music, lieder recitals, and teaching. She has partnered worldwide with many other professional musicians and ensembles in her career, including soprano Lara Bruckmann, the Del Sol String Quartet, violinist Iris Stone, and bass-baritone René Perler. Eva-Maria was a founding member of the award winning Swiss Charmillon Piano Quartet. Many of her chamber music and Lieder recitals have been broadcast on Swiss Radio DRS2, and Radio de la Suisse Romande. As an educator, Eva-Maria has been a faculty member of the University of San Francisco and currently teaches in the music program at the Nueva School in Hillsborough, CA, founded by Sir Yehudi Menuhin.

Keisuke Nakagoshi
began his piano studies at the age of ten, arriving in the United States from Japan at the age of 18. Mr. Nakagoshi earned his Bachelors degree in Composition and Masters degree in Chamber Music from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. Graduating as the recipient of multiple top awards, Keisuke was selected to represent the SFCM for the Kennedy Center's Conservatory Project, a program featuring the most promising young musicians from major conservatories across the United States.

Mr. Nakagoshi has performed to acclaim on prestigious concert stages across the United States, including the Kennedy Center, Carnegie Hall, the Hollywood Bowl, and Davies Symphony Hall in San Francisco. He has received training from some of the most celebrated musicians of our time - Emanuel Ax, Gilbert Kalish, Menahem Pressler, Robert Mann, Norman Fisher, The Peabody Trio - and enjoys collaborating with other accomplished musicians such as Lucy Shelton, Ian Swensen, Jodi Levitz, Robin Sutherland, the Afiara String Quartet and San Francisco Contemporary Music Players.

In addition to performing with symphonies and playing an expansive repertoire of chamber music, Keisuke tours as principal pianist and slide guitarist with conductor George Daugherty's award-winning "Bugs Bunny on Broadway" and "Bugs Bunny at the Symphony," performing with American orchestras from coast to coast.

Mr. Nakagoshi is Pianist-in-Residence at The San Francisco Conservatory of Music and Opera Parallele.

This album contains no booklet.