The French pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard encountered the music of Karlheinz Stockhausen at an early age and became a faithful companion to the composer. A few years ago Aimard presented Stockhausen’s Klavierstücke I–XI for the first time in a broader context, proving as he did so that he is one of the most distinguished piano interpreters of contemporary music.

Stockhausen’s pieces, most of which were written in the 1950s, are important milestones in avant-garde piano music. Each one of the pieces conveys a desire to define sounds and dimensions of expression anew.

»Mantra« is an early work by the innovative composer, an experiment with electronic sounds written for two pianos and ring modulators. Performing with Aimard is his former student Tamara Stefanovich, who is an exceptional interpreter of Stockhausen in her own right. Together they prove that this tightly constructed work is neither cold nor impersonal, but is, rather, thoroughly sensuous: »Everything he conceived was humanly felt,« says Aimard on Stockhausen. read less