Well, it was not your ordinary night of live music at Mother’s Wine Emporium on Friday. I walked into the tightly packed room in the basement of the Union and found a man playing what appeared to be an anchor. It was really Gideon Freudmann playing the electronic cello. For those of you who do not know who he is, Gideon Freudmann is a world-renowned cellist. He has been recording since the mid-80s.
Freudmann was trained in the traditional style of classical cello playing, but his style is anything but traditional. He enters the realm of humor and creativity with his peculiar looking instrument. His melodies are very strong, and instrumentally he can do anything with his cello. Freudmann is so versatile that he easily brings contemporary songs into his melodies.
His new album, Ukrainian Pajama Party, hits stores soon, and will take his music to new heights. He has already released a number of albums: Banking Left, which was his first, Cellobotomy, Adobe Dog House, and Sound of Distant Deer. He has also recorded many instrumental solo performances. When he is not recording albums, he plays a tour of colleges, concert halls, and schools. He played before a huge crowd at The Egg in Albany just before coming to play at Mother’s.
I feel the best song he played Friday night was "Robin Hood Changes His Oil." It has a great melody and is full of strong, deep cello. It is really hard to describe in words; you really have to experience his music first hand. He has a very good technical basis for the cello; however, some of his lyrics were lacking in meaning.
Freudmann’s performance was funny and exciting. His instrument was also very odd. The music he plays has a very therapeutic and relaxing effect. It is a strong, bellowing sound, similar to that of whales communicating.
Overall, the performance was thrilling. It is good to see such a versatile artist being showcased on an instrument you do not hear very often, if at all. I was really only accustomed to hearing the cello in classical concert style. The crowd at Mother’s was very attentive and excited, which added to the concert element in the tiny room. Mother’s will continue its concert schedule with two more acts next Friday and Saturday beginning at 8 pm. There is no cost for students with an RPI identification card.
