Berlin-based double bassist, composer and bandleader Haggai Cohen-Milo – bassist in the Omer Klein Trio – releases his ambitious new album Gravitations on 13 June. Known for his genre-defying approach, he presents a set of new pieces that re-imagine great classical works.
Drawing on Debussy, Mahler and Verdi, he presents a set of tracks that as he puts it, don’t try to be “jazz does classical”, but that take the spirit, content matter and feel of the originals – retaining their “gravitational pull” and presenting them in a fresh and engaging way.
Daniel Kühnel, artistic director of the Symphoniker Hamburg approached Cohen-Milo to create compositions that could cross boundaries and bring in new audiences while honouring the works that they are drawn from. “The old classical masterpieces are so full of life, so full of material, so I took them as a source and inspiration to compose something new”.
Mahler’s Das Lied von der Erde, Verdi’s Requiem, and Debussy’s Prélude à L’après-midi d’un Faune acted as the springboard for the project- having been selected collaboratively by Kühnel and Cohen-Milo.
Starting with the Mahler, Haggai set about using the feel and the sonic implications of the original as a vehicle for new ideas – “I copied all the dynamic markings. All the instructions Mahler gave to the people, but not the notes. I brought it to some musicians and said, can you play this?”
After having improvised sessions “using the shell” of Mahler’s piece as Cohen-Milo puts it, he started to compose using the same approach and principles. From this point, he moved on to creating a moving interpretation of Verdi’s Lacrimosa in two parts.
On ‘Lacrimosa Part Two’, the bold sonic fusions are taken further still with the addition of rapper and spoken word artist Stimulus. Through the bold decision to lean into hip hop influences while fusing classical and jazz elements, Cohen-Milo plays with the deep versatility of jazz and its ability to shapeshift and renew. Of the collaboration, he says “I wanted to have lyrics, but do something different with it. I gave Stimulus the melody and the theme and let him write”.
For the project, a hugely dynamic and versatile band was assembled, comprised of the man himself leading from the double bass, saxophonists Emma Rawicz and Maria Kim Grand, James Shipp on vibraphone and keyboard, trumpeters Philip Dizack and Justin Stanton, Tamuz Dekel on guitar and Amir Bresler and Ziv Ravitz on the drums.
Another highlight of the project is ‘3+3’, a moving piece inspired by Debussy and structured around two sections of his original work, taking 3 bars of each. The piece was written for the ensemble to experiment with and improvise around.
With Gravitations, Cohen-Milo has created an extraordinary body of work that doesn’t stand still. The compositions are pushed and pulled between the influences of classical music, jazz and hip-hop – leaning one way and then another and often finding a sonic space all their own.
Haggai describes the feeling of creating the work with a distinct poetic flair – “I feel like a spaceship drawn to the moon – the classical work and then accelerating past it, navigating with counterforce to explore new worlds beyond.”
Gravitations captures the live spirit of an ensemble at the height of their powers, working together to shape and mould the vision of a master composer and bandleader, himself drawing inspiration from these beautiful and timeless works. If you’re looking for adventurous contemporary music that pushes boundaries and defies genre while still honouring tradition – then you can’t go wrong with this album.
Haggai Cohen Milo releases Gravitations on 13 June 2025.
The project receives its live premier at two iconic German venues across the release weekend:
14 June: Laeiszhalle Hamburg
15 June: Framed Festival at Wasserturm, Prenzlauer Berg Berlin
