Solo 79-80  LP - Rene van Helsdingen
1980

Album description:
Rare piano recordings showcasing a different approach on Improvisation by a young jazz pianist in the beginning of his career.

I played when I was in love, sad, wasted, angry, happy, romantic, in search of something and not able to foresee the future. Being an artist is just an experiment and an endless school in which I will stay childish forever.

René van Helsdingen - piano
Frank Morgan - saxophone
Tosuko - Japanese poetry
 

Lost piano  (R. van Helsdingen) 6.10 min

Stoned piano (R. van Helsdingen) 7.21 min

Japanese blues (R. van Helsdingen, Frank Morgan) 6.34 min

Um papa (R. van Helsdingen) 9.10 min

Slowdownimsky (R. van Helsdingen) 6.44 min

Some real nice smoke (R. van Helsdingen) 6.45 min

Coltrane poetry (R. van Helsdingen, F. Morgan) 6.00 min

Drunk piano (R. van Helsdingen) 8.06 min

Collection blues (R. van Helsdingen) 9.30 min

The summer knows  (Michel Legrand) 7.23 min

Album Cover portrait drawing: Peter Gentur

All tracks digitized and remixed at the Farmsound studio, Heelsum, The Netherlands Engineer Wil Hesen

Tracks 1, 5 and 8 performed by Rene van Helsdingen,
recorded in May 1979 at the Media-Art Studios in Hormosa Beach , Los Angeles. Recording engineers:  David, Ralph, Spot, Mike.
Mixed at the Soundpush Studio, Blaricum, Holland by Frans Mijts and Jan Schuurman en Maarten Hartrich.

Track 2, "Stoned Piano" was privately recorded on a Nakamichi cassette deck at 6216 Fountain Ave, Hollywood California, in 1979. An animation video was created in 2018 by Rene for the promotion of the Album.

Track 3, 4, 6, 7, 9, 10 were recorded on cassette in March 1980 at Jack Duganne’ s workshop, 2651 Main street, Santa Monica Ca 90405, USA.
Track 3, 7 and 10 feature Frank Morgan who was hosting the performance at the workshop.  Music and Art Jamboree (artist collective).

Track 3 and 7 also feature a Japanese Poet: Tosuko, who joined in as a member of the audience. 
Japanese blues fragmented translation: 1 Ulysses, No face, Birth, Ocean, Music, Dance, America, Philosophy, Ghost, Mermaid, Suffering, the Man with no face and no name, Sounds from a desolate country etc.
Coltrane Poetry fragmented translation:

Dedicated to John Coltrane, Fierce in living, He entered a space in Heaven, Created a space on earth with no sound, Short-limited endless journey, Thoughts are eyes and wind, Thoughts are hot and dark, Sitting alone on a Summer afternoon. 


© 1980 HELSDINGEN MUSIC. Amsterdam the Netherlands - hmbv@xs4all.nl.

Promotional video clip for the release of an album entitled: Solo79. Experimental home piano recorded at 6216 Fountain Avenue, Hollywood, California in 1979. Piano playing, editing and animation by Rene van Helsdingen, Helsdingen Music, The Netherlands. Album Cover portrait drawing: Peter Gentur. Additional drawings Lorenzo Giovagnoli (Castle drawing), Ramses van Veldhuisen (Dancing puppet)

Photo below:
Rene at the Philadelphia cheese steak corner, Hollywood California.