"Piano Concertos" is his first recording with orchestra (Moscow's Globalis Symphony Orchestra, under Felix Korobov). Here Khalife takes up Prokofiev's "Piano Concerto No. 5" and a newly commissioned work, Abdallah al-Masri 's "Piano Concerto No 1."
The two works are quite different but both evoke their own sort of ambivalence. The pianist says this quality appeals to him.
"I wanted to record a piece that hasn't often been recorded," he says of Prokofiev's Fifth, "though some great pianists have recorded it. The piece is interesting because it sounds as though Prokofiev isn't being serious. Yet it's serious music. There's a cartoon-like irony, with a strong jazz element. You can really hear how he was being influenced by all the new music happening at the time."
Khalife says he asked Masri to compose a concerto for him. He finished it in seven months. "I've known Abdullah as a gifted composer for a long time," he continues. "He's a traveller, like me. He started his career in Moscow, so he's half Russian, but he lives in Kuwait. We share the same mixed identity.
"There are many influences at work [in Masri's concerto]. It has the characteristics of a film soundtrack. The orchestra is present at all times, yet it's sometimes timid. It suits my style of playing very well but I think it's also a personal piece."
To look at it, Khalife's work seems lodged between several different worlds. A gifted composer and improvisational performer, he's deeply committed to classical tradition.
Tracks:
1. Prokofiev piano concerto No. 5
2. El Masri piano concerto No. 1
