Ourselves, as we are Carlos Cipa

• Carlos Cipa (b. 1990):
• 1 Cipa: Took 03:55
• 2 Cipa: Between two strangers 04:38
• 3 Cipa: Walk so silently 04:54
• 4 Cipa: Unpredictable patterns 04:34
• 5 Cipa: Ourselves, as we are 03:42
• 6 Cipa: Face the sea 04:46
• 7 Cipa: City waiting 04:29
• 8 Cipa: Maintenance 06:00
• 9 Cipa: Forgotten me 04:23
• Total Runtime 41:21

Info for Ourselves, as we are

The idea behind Carlos Cipa’s new album is easy to describe: one room, one piano, one pianist/composer. Taking one’s time. Approaching with the greatest possible impartiality. Simply improvising, at first only from, for, and with oneself. But what at first might seem a simple concept becomes more complex at a closer look.

In recent years, many of us have likely contemplated more than ever on ourselves, and some of us have had the opportunity to get to know ourselves better – or, at least, differently – during this time. It is precisely this process, of coming to terms with our innermost selves, that Carlos Cipa celebrates with his new album and which has inspired his musical expression. Thus, Cipa sees the nine short piano pieces, created in ultimately just a few weeks, as a "conscious introspection", a kind of "zooming in on the object of contemplation, and in this case oneself". It is undoubtedly from very personal and intimate insight which Cipa draws this album.

Apart from the idea of impartiality and self-speculation, Cipa took one other decisive conceptual approach: to play as quietly as possible. The fascinating result is nothing less than the discovery of a new piano sound world, with considerably fewer percussive elements and significantly more string sound, some of which would hardly be perceptible without recording technology or amplification and which, according to Cipa, allows “an even deeper empathy with the instrument”.

In the microcosm of Cipa's “quietness”, which also values the importance of making quiet things audible, background noises – or “sounds that the piano simply makes”, as he says – are unavoidable. Avoiding them has never been Cipa’s intention. He is, of course, not the first musician to give meaning to these supposedly disturbing noises (produced by the mechanical processes in the instrument) and make them part of the music. Not only the musician, but also the instrument, may and should be what it is.

With its quiet, contemplative solo-piano sounds, Ourselves, as we are may not seem groundbreaking at first glance. But, as Cipa points out, “Today, it can be more radical to make a quiet piano album than a totally complex and intricate piece of music.” Undoubtedly, the multifaceted sound palette and disarmingly raw and fragile emotional elements make the music of Ourselves, as we are a deeply vulnerable collection. In the age of fake authenticity, remakes, and pieces commissioned for high-reach mood playlists, this approach is perhaps one of the few remaining ways to create art: to reveal our true selves. Radically personal. Radically intimate. Radically honest. Ourselves, as we are.

"Cipa's experiment is no coincidence: the Munich composer has worked with jazz, electro and improvisation in the past and has repeatedly expanded his classical horizons towards pop. 'Ourselves, as we are' has nevertheless become a classical piano album: very elegant, pensive, almost meditative, and yet always creating images that embrace you in a well-tempered way. Quiet, but never boring." (Kulturnews)

"Between neo-classical and ambient, the Munich pianist finds the 'radical quietness'.... Cipa plays the piano so quietly in places that the sounds and background noises come together on a hierarchical level... Which shows that this music is precisely not created in an idealised metaverse, but in a world where background noises are - well - part of the good tone." (Musikexpress)

"The album is certainly not suitable for enjoyment on the side, but wants to be perceived, experienced and explored with all the senses. One can lose oneself in it excellently, and with that Carlos Cipa has probably achieved exactly what he had in mind when composing it." (plattentests.de)

Carlos Cipa, piano

Please Note: We offer this album in its native sampling rate of 48 kHz, 24-bit. The provided 96 kHz version was up-sampled and offers no audible value!

Carlos Cipa
is a Munich-based composer and multi-instrumentalist. He has been classically trained on the piano and studied contemporary classical composition at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Munich. During his teenage years, he started playing the drums and gained experience as a member of various bands. Experimenting with different styles of music, he turned back to piano as his main instrument, facilitating him to find his way throughout composition and improvisation, before releasing his debut »The Monarch and the Viceroy« and his sophomore record »All your life you walk« on Denovali Records in 2012 and 2014.

This album contains no booklet.