Erik Friedlander
New York, NY, USA &
Teho Teardo
Pordenone, Italy
improvisation
Erik Friedlander - cello
Teho Teardo - electronics
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In 2004 cellist Erik Friedlander and composer Teho Teardo began a transatlantic collaboration. Their focus was the poetry of the great director and writer Pier Paolo Pasolini who died in 1975. Using the poems as a jumping-off point Friedlander improvised solo and multi-cello pieces that were then sent via Internet to Italy where Teardo deconstructed the tracks and added new material to create new pieces. Working together in this manner the pieces were refined and the collaborative energy of the two musicians became focused and a musical style developed. In November of 2005 the two met for only the second time to play together in a concert honoring Pasolini on the 30th anniversary of his death where they improvised new pieces. This is one such track. A new CD of the Pasolini works is near completion.
Erik Friedlander started playing guitar at age 6 and added cello two years later. He began formal lessons at age 12. Erik continued his musical studies at Columbia University in 1978. Upon graduation, he spent the next decade refining his cello technique through long hours of practice, supporting himself by playing in various orchestras and Broadway shows, recording commercial music for jingles and movies, and doing session work with artists like Laurie Anderson, Courtney Love's Hole, and Dar Williams. He also started his first small groups and made his first recordings. Erik came into his own in the 1990s as he became an integral part of NYC's downtown jazz scene receiving notices in publications like the Boston Globe, The Wire, and Billboard which wrote, "Friedlander [is] one of today's most ingenious and forward-thinking musical practitioners."
He has always worked to stake out new ground for the cello in both his compositional choices and his dynamic improvising style. His music blends his vision of what the cello can be pushed to do, while maintaining a firm grasp on traditions, both improvising and classical.
Teho Teardo is a musician, composer and sound designer who has collaborated with many of the biggest names in experimental music, dance, and performance. His film soundtrack work has won him accolades and awards from all over the world. He is currently the anchor for the radio program Oltre Il Confine - heard on the Italian network Radio Rai.