Loophole – Roman Rofalski
Loophole is the new solo EP from Berlin-based pianist and composer Roman Rofalski. It filters the musician's passion for electronic music through piano and electronics. The origins of the project lie in a collaboration with the Stockhausen Foundation, which returned Roman to a keyboard and studio setting after something of a hiatus. He brought his love for 90s underground techno to an environment of highly complex contemporary electronic composition.
Instantly, the idea grew to incorporate generated sounds into his piano improvisation concept, to create a bridge between complex rhythms, soundscapes and a piano sound, augmenting the sonic possibilities of the instruments with contemporary processing and effects. He recorded acoustic piano at two sessions in summer 2019, collecting both compositions, improvisations and sound fragments. After an extensive process of editing and processing, a set of pieces was finished – Loophole.
Roman's music strives to remove the artificial boundaries that have been established between classical, improvised jazz and contemporary sound experiments. With his jazz-trio he has released three albums so far featuring both original compositions and arrangements of classical works, especially those of the early 20th century. His solo piano debut The Kapustin Project (Sony Classical) puts a spotlight on the Ukrainian Composer and his classical music written in a jazz idiom, merging it with contemporaries like Frederic Rzewski, Bernhard Lang as well as Roman's own compositions.
Felix Schlarmann – drums and electronics on 'Sea' and 'Nagging'
Rashad Becker – Mastering
Check out the music video for Alpha, an augmented piano improvisation featuring on Loophole.
Meet the artist
Roman Rofalski
Pianist and composer Roman Rofalski uses his music to merge the worlds of classical and jazz, playing with the relationship between composition and improvisation. An established performer of both genres, Roman has toured internationally both as a soloist and with various ensembles. His eponymous jazz trio have released three albums so far, featuring original compositions and arrangements of 20th century classical works. He is a member of the Oh Ton-Ensemble for Contemporary Music, works closely with the Stockhausen Foundation, and is a partner of Schimmel pianos.