Love Song Theo Bleckmann & Fumio Yasuda

• 1 The Man with the Child in His Eyes 04:38
• 2 Feldeinsamkeit / In Summer Fields 04:48
• 3 But Not for Me 03:59
• 4 My Favorite Things 04:06
• 5 Lili Marleen 03:35
• 6 Ich Bin Von Kopf Bis Fuß Auf Liebe Eingestellt 02:57
• 7 I've Got a Crush on You 05:12
• 8 Someone to Watch over Me 03:56
• 9 True Love 03:54
• 10 I've Got the World on a String 04:55
• 11 This Woman's Work 03:59
• 12 I Hear a Rhapsody 04:23
• 13 Maskulinum-Femininum 01:52
• 14 Love and Anger 03:52
• Total Runtime 56:06

Info for Love Song

Theo Bleckmann performs in 2004 in Stefan Winter’s cabaret opera »The Chestnut Ball« at the Opernfestspiele München; this is the beginning of a musical journey through pop, jazz and classical music to contemporary composition of New Music. For the collaboration between Theo Bleckmann and Winter&Winter the Japanese composer and pianist Fumio Yasuda plays a key role as arranger and duo partner. Bleckmann and Yasuda meet for the first time during the rehearsals and performances of »The Chestnut Ball« in 2004. Shortly after this first production, available as well as a CD double album on Winter&Winter, the artistic team Theo Bleckmann and Fumio Yasuda puts out another four albums, among them children songs for adults titled »Mother Goose’s Melodies«.

Fumio Yasuda creates fascinating orchestral versions for »Las Vegas Rhapsody« of so-called jazz standards, pieces from Broadway and of musicals like »Sound Of Music«. »My Favorite Things«, the musical declaration of love to Austria by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II, is as much part of this album’s repertoire as Cole Porter’s »True Love«, recorded with the classical Basel chamber orchestra, which fills the role of a large show orchestra with flying colours. Bleckmann and Yasuda realise together the album »Berlin – Songs of Love and War, Peace and Exile«. »Lili Marleen« in a solo performance of Theo Bleckmann with electronics and »Ich bin von Kopf bis Fuß auf Liebe eingestellt« for piano and string quartet are made in new musical arrangements. For Charles Schumann’s Bar in Munich the two musicians record »Favored Bar Songs«. The love songs »Someone To Watch Over Me« and the swinging »I’ve Got The World On A String« are performed as duets.

The travel into the world of the soloist Theo Bleckmann becomes a very exceptional musical excursion. Only with his voice and few accompanying instruments Bleckmann fascinates with his album »I Dwell In Possibility«. For »Love Song« music producer Stefan Winter selects »I Hear A Rhapsody«. Together with Theo Bleckmann Stefan Winter produces between 2004 and 2014 altogether ten albums. With the Uri Caine Ensemble Bleckmann sings the Gershwin songs »But Not For Me« and »I’ve Got A Crush On You«. The recording of Charles Ives songs with the band Kneebody is one of the most impressing discoveries of the artist Theo Bleckmann. Ives’s »Feldeinsamkeit/In Summer Fields« belongs to his most remarkable interpretations. »Love Song« opens and ends with a song by Kate Bush from »Hello Earth! – The Music of Kate Bush«. This album is not a simple compilation of works, instead unites a special collection of love songs being among the highlights of the ten year working relationship with Winter&Winter. According to the theme »Love Song« Bleckmann unfolds his artistic diversity. The songs about love run like a thread through his musical abundance.

Theo Bleckmann, vocals, electronics, melodica, glass harp
Caleb Burhans, violin
Joyce Hammann, violin
Mark Helias, bass
Kaveh Rastegar, bass
Skúli Sverrisson, bass
Adam Benjamin, keyboards, piano
Uri Caine, keyboards, piano
Henry Hey, keyboards, piano
Jim Black, drums, percussion
John Hollenbeck, drums, percussion
Nate Wood, drums, percussion
Ralph Alessi, trumpet
Ben Wendel, bassoon
Fumio Yasuda, piano, arranger
Kammerorchester Basel
Bernd Ruf, conductor

Theo Bleckmann
A singer and new music composer of eclectic tastes and prodigious gifts, GRAMMY NOMINATED and ECHO award recipient Theo Bleckmann makes music that is accessibly sophisticated, unsentimentally emotional, and seriously playful, leading his work to be described as “from another planet” (New York Times), as “magical, futuristic,” (AllAboutJazz), “limitless” (Citypaper, Philadelphia) “transcendent” (Village Voice) and “brilliant” (New York Magazine).

Bleckmann has released a series of gorgeous and irreverent albums on Winter & Winter, including recordings of Las Vegas standards, of Weimar art songs, and of popular “bar songs” (all with pianist Fumio Yasuda), a recording of newly-arranged songs by Charles Ives (with jazz/rock collective Kneebody), his acoustic Solos for Voice “I dwell in possibility”and his latest project: "Hello Earth - the music of Kate Bush."

Bleckmann has additionally collaborated with musicians and composers, including Laurie Anderson, Uri Caine, Philip Glass, John Hollenbeck, Sheila Jordan, Phil Kline, David Lang, Kirk Nurock, Ben Monder, Michael Tilson Thomas, Kenny Wheeler, John Zorn, the Bang on a Can All-stars, and, most prominently, Meredith Monk, with whom Bleckmann worked as a core ensemble member for fifteen years.

He has recently been interview by Terry Gross on NPR’s Fresh Air and appeared on the Letterman show with Laurie Anderson.

Fumio Yasuda
was born in Tokyo, Japan. Having begun to learn classical piano in early childhood, Fumio Yasuda studied composition at The Kunitachi College of Music, soon finds hisinterest in improvisation music and performs together with well known improvisers in Japan. From 1995, he begins his musical collaboration with Japan's most famous photographer, Nobuyoshi Araki.

Yasuda's compositions for Araki's projects in collaboration with sounds and images, series of Arakinema films works are performed and created artistic sensations in various parts in the world such as Vienna, Hamburg, Taipei,and New York.

Fumio Yasuda has released many leaders albums with the Winter & Winter label. All of bellows are composed by Fumio Yasuda. The“Kakyoku" is composed and arranged by Fumio Yasuda and with Ernst Reijseger [violoncello] , The European Art Orchestra and a photographer, Nobuyoshi Araki. The "Accordion Concerto" is featured with Teodoro Anzellotti as a soloist. The “Piano concerto”castrating Kammerorchester Basel is played by Yasuda (piano). The "Charmed with Verdi" is the piano-transcriptions after the Verdi's operas. As arranger and pianist : “The Las Vegas Rhapsody" -including his composition “The Las Vegas Rhapsody prologue" , the Berlin Kabarett, and the popular “bar songs” are with a vocalist, Theo Bleckmann.

This album contains no booklet.