SOLOTUDE

Solotude is the new solo piano album by the South African piano maestro Abdullah Ibrahim. It was recorded on Ibrahim's birthday in October 2021, at the Hirzinger hall in Riedering where he would traditionally hold his birthday concert. The hall, famed in Germany for its acoustic, lends itself perfectly to the mood of the album, which is at once warm, timeless, and solitary. The music spans timeless classics including "Blues for a Hip King" and "The Wedding," seldom recorded pieces such as "Tokai," as well as new themes "Once Upon A Midnight," "In The Evening," and "Signal On A Hill." The enduring purity and honesty of Ibrahim's touch and the emotive simplicity of his writing demonstrates that even in the dark, hope shines through. At 86, and even through a pandemic, the ever-active and imaginative Ibrahim shows no signs of stopping.