Nothing on Earth - Original Music by Erik Friedlander

SSR017 - USA Release 2014

The Nothing on Earth is the title of a 2013 documentary about Aussie photographer Murray Fredericks and his dangerous attempts to visit and photograph the stark beauty of the melting ice cap of Greenland. Directory Mick Angus contacted Friedlander in December of 2012 to score the film and the two worked closely for months.

“The director and I collaborated intensely to get the score just right and by the deadline in early 2013 we had a stunning solo cello score. As the director went on to complete the process of getting the film to the theaters, I felt a nagging sense that my job was still somehow unfinished. After a few sleepless nights I realized I needed to get into the studio and do more recording. There were more possibilities to explore!” Friedlander brought Takeishi and Nagai into the studio and set about reinterpreting the soundtrack as well as recording new pieces Friedlander had written. With Nothing on Earth Friedlander has created a quiet but powerful album in which atmospheric, masterfully plucked cello passages are coupled with Nagai’s lyrical accordion and piano performances as well as Takeishi’s soulful percussion, thus creating a rousingly energetic, yet restrained trio sound. The new band is called Black Phoebe and will be touring Europe in April of 2015 (http://www.saudades.at/)

NOTHING ON EARTH REVIEWS

“The solo pieces ...impress. In them, [Friedlander] demands the utmost of his creativity and his abilities, and uses all of the subtleties of the cello to his advantage.” - Gonzo Circus

“It is precisely the discreet and uninhibited nature of the music that conveys the experience of vastness and apparent infinity that the film tries to comprehend.” - African Paper