French jazz master Vincent Courtois and Swiss piano wizard Colin Vallon are both inclined to combine lyrical melodies with abstract improvisation. Their first joint album features arrangements of their earlier compositions and free improvisations, whose tone is defined by transcendent beauty and a pervading melancholy.

After the collaboration between French jazz master Vincent Courtois and American pianist Bill Carrothers came to an end, the cellist formed a new duo with Colin Vallon, who shares his penchant for combining lyrical melodies with abstract improvisation. The two musicians gave their first joint concert in early 2023. For their debut album, A Simple Fall, they reworked their earlier compositions into songs without words, and complemented them with free improvisations. The final concept of the album was also influenced by a domestic tragedy, which inspired the title track. However, the tone of the album is not defined by the darkness of grief, but by transcendent beauty and pervading melancholy. Courtois and Vallon’s approach continues the tradition of the cello-piano duo, rooted primarily in classical music, and adds a unique orchestral dimension to this intimate chamber lineup: the cello can equally play the role of a percussion, a harmony or a melody instrument, while the piano sometimes transforms into a glass harp, a music box, or a viola da gamba. The result is a kaleidoscopic musical material that bridges the gap between classical music, contemporary music, and jazz, and is permeated by the sense of “free fall” inherent in improvisation.

Vincent Courtois, whose work spans classical music, jazz and even film scores, has recorded four albums for BMC Records in recent years: The Demons of Tosca was released in 2019, followed in 2023 by Carmen Rhapsody, conceived by Aki Takase, Nothing else, with Daniel Erdmann and Robin Fincker, and Twigs, recorded with Sanne Rambags and Julian Sartorius. The cellist will also appear on the album of Thérapie de Couple, led by Daniel Erdmann, which is expected to be released in the near future. The other member of the duo is Swiss pianist Colin Vallon, who, with his trio, has repeatedly shown on his ECM Records albums what is perhaps his greatest strength: the ability to condense any mood or emotion into unusual combinations of sounds. During his studies, he turned from classical music to jazz; the unique preparation techniques he has developed are among his most important means of musical expression.