Keith Jarrett - Hymns / Spheres (1976 Japanese ECM 2LP Gatefold)

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Keith Jarrett - Hymns / Spheres - Japanese ECM Double Vinyl LP Gatefold Edition

One of Keith Jarrett's most daring and spiritually ambitious recordings, Hymns / Spheres presents the legendary pianist performing entirely improvised music on the historic 18th-century Karl Joseph Riepp pipe organ at the Benedictine Abbey in Ottobeuren, Bavaria. Recorded in September 1976 and released the same year as part of Trio Records' Jazz Mania series in Japan, this double album captures Jarrett venturing far beyond conventional jazz into the realm of sacred music, free improvisation, and sonic exploration.

The Karl Joseph Riepp organ at Ottobeuren is one of the finest Baroque organs in Europe, with nearly 5,000 pipes creating a vast palette of timbres and textures. Jarrett, known primarily as a jazz pianist, approached this monumental instrument with both reverence and adventurous spirit, improvising entirely in the moment without predetermined structures. The result is music that draws from Baroque tradition, modern classical music, jazz sensibility, and Jarrett's own spiritual searching.

The album is divided into two sections. "Hymn Of Remembrance" opens the first disc with a contemplative meditation that establishes the sacred atmosphere. The "Spheres" movements, numbered first through ninth, form an extended suite that explores the organ's sonic possibilities across three more LP sides. Jarrett moves between dense, complex passages and moments of austere simplicity, from thundering bass pedal tones to delicate flute stop melodies. The music is alternately majestic and intimate, cosmic and earthbound.

"Hymn Of Release" closes the album with a sense of resolution and transcendence, bringing the listener full circle from the opening hymn. Throughout, Jarrett's improvisational gifts translate remarkably to this very different instrument. His harmonic sophistication, melodic invention, and structural sense create music that feels both spontaneous and inevitable.

This Japanese pressing, made by Trio-Kenwood Corporation with lacquer cutting by Victor Company of Japan, offers excellent sound quality that captures the organ's massive dynamic range and the Basilica's extraordinary acoustics. The gatefold packaging includes two double-sided inserts: an ECM catalogue insert and a catalogue and liner notes insert with notes by Japanese critic Hisami Noguchi. 

This is an audiophile recording of the highest order.