Ok, so I have now listened to the whole album, Beethoven Blues. As you can tell from the title, he riffs around some of Beethovenās most famous pieces. Some of it is great, some of it is fun. All of it is interesting, especially to me because I play contemporary music, which used to get labeled ānew age,ā a term I never liked (probably because some people apply it with derision). So, one of the things I found interesting about this album was that, in merging Beethoven with jazz, Batiste creates a lot of motifs or musical thoughts that I associate with the kind of music I play. I wasnāt expecting that, so it was really interesting to hear. And lovely, so many of the moments I found myself thinking, oooh, I want a 5-minute version of that, on sheet music!
Anyway, my absolute favorite piece from the album is Fur Elise Reverie. Itās amazing, gloriousā¦ none of these words fitā¦ as it happens, Fur Elise is the only piece by Beethoven Iāve ever played to completion and actually polished. This was years ago, but I always feel that you āhearā a piece differently if youāve played it, so I think thatās part of why I enjoyed listening to Batiste go to town with it.
Itās 15 minutes long, but IMO totally worth it. But youāll want to give a listen when you can sit for an awhile.