ECM is set to release a new live recording of revered pianist Keith Jarrett called Budapest Concert.
Recorded at the Béla Bartók National Concert Hall in Budapest, Hungary, the double album is the second complete show to be issued from Jarrett’s European tour in the summer of 2016.
Jarrett, whose family roots reach back to Hungary, viewed the Budapest concert as “akin to a homecoming,” and it’s said to have inspired a great deal of creative improvisation.
While Jarrett’s early solo concerts played through an extended arc of music over the course of an evening, his concerts in later years have generated suite-like structures comprising individual movements, likely shaped by his experience in classical music.
Ahead of Budapest Concert‘s release, Jarrett shared one of the tracks to mark his 75th birthday in May. It’s a tender, absorbing treatment of the beloved ’50s composition Answer Me.
Originally titled Mütterlein, the song was written by German musician Gerhard Winkler and Austrian lyricist Fred Rauch. Carl Sigman then wrote two versions of the song with English lyrics — a religious-themed version called Answer Me, and a secular version called Answer Me, My Love — and it became a No. 1 hit in the U.K. for both Frankie Laine and David Whitfield.
The song was most famously recorded by Nat King Cole in 1954, with other notable performances including Joni Mitchell’s version for her 2000 album Both Sides Now.
Answer Me has been in Jarrett’s live repertoire for the past decade. Fans may have already heard a different recording of the song on his latest album Munich 2016, which was captured during the same tour as the Budapest concert.
Widely heralded by connoisseurs of both jazz and classical music, Jarrett marked his 75th birthday with a reminder that he remains one of the greatest living musicians.
However, Jarrett recently revealed that he suffered two strokes in 2018 and is now unlikely to play live again.
Budapest Concert is out Oct. 30, 2020.