Original image by There Stands the Glass.
I wondered if I was on my deathbed four hours after receiving a seasonal flu shot three days ago. Thankfully, the alarming diminishment of my lifeblood quickly dissipated. The tone of Lontano, the new album by German cellist Anja Lechner and French pianist François Couturier, matches the weary sense of resignation I experienced. Fluttering between planes of existence, I was overcome by bittersweet reflections of my time on Earth. A recent 82-minute concert by the duo exudes a similar otherworldliness even without the signature ethereal ECM Records ambiance enhancing Lontano.