Mitch Kessler: Der Erlkonig

  My late uncle Billy Sunshine, a very talented visual artist who won an Emmy award in 1973 for his work with CBS, once told me something that has never left me: “If you’re going to be an artist, you have to accept the fact that you’re in school your whole life.” It’s in that spirit that Igive you this collection of musical pieces.

   Reaction to my debut album, “Erratica,” recorded in 2008 and released in 2009, has been uniformly positive, and that record has received quite a bit of airplay in Europe and the US; but “Erratica” was just a starting point. “Der Erlkönig” reflects another two years of my lifelong musical education and introduces some different concepts.

   Several of the selections on this record involve significant elements of chance. In this respect, one might say it’s less scripted than “Erratica.” It also utilizes the spoken word on the title track, and in German no less (props go out to bassist Ira Coleman for helping me with some of the finer points of German pronunciation; Ira is fluent in German and French). I’ve always been taken with Franz Schubert’s setting of this classic Göthe poem and decided to produce my own musical version of it, in a manner reflecting its dark subject matter.

  I am again graced with the world-class musicians whose contributions made “Erratica” an artistic success: Percussionist Peter O’Brien, bassist Ira Coleman, and pianist John Esposito.  Thanks go to John for again providing the auspices of Sunjump Records. And, no props would be complete without recognizing the recording talents of Scott Petito, an industry leader. Scott happens to be a great and often-recorded musician in his own right, which gives him a unique perspective on the recording process. Finally, recognition goes to Monika Woll for the artwork used in this album.

I hope you enjoy the music.

– Mitch Kessler  2010