Flow state: Sharon Bezaly and Rosey Chan on the art of improvisation

The flute's single note is an abundant variety of sound; it is extended, played with – and without vibrato – nudging its neighbouring microtones. The piano line reflects the pensive call, pushing open a new door here and there, both leading and mirroring. The combination of timbres and sounds is naturalistic, suited to the resonant setting. The music would eventually become Sunrise, the first track on Duology, a new album by Sharon Bezaly and Rosey Chan, named for its symbolic opening on a new style of playing – for Bezaly, at least – and centring qualities. But the recording, and the music itself, nearly didn't exist at all.

Denzyl Feigelson, founder and CEO of record label Platoon, had suggested that the flautist and pianist should collaborate, and Chan was commissioned to write a piece for Bezaly. The flautist has co-created multiple concertante works for the instrument, enhancing the repertoire with concertos by Brett Dean, Sally Beamish and Sofia Gubaidulina, among others (recorded on various collections via BIS). Chan, a cross-genre multi-disciplinary composer-pianist, was yet to begin work in earnest on the piece – there was no score for Bezaly to view.

Sharon Bezaly: 'It’s exciting for me to connect with audiences in this new way.' (Image courtesy of Platoon)

'We had some coffee – and chocolate – and enjoyed chatting through some ideas,' says Chan, 'then, as Sharon had her flute with her, we decided to play and see what happens.' For many classical musicians, this is a horrifying prospect: the idea of improvising from scratch is highly intimidating. Yet, as Chan points out, it's not really from scratch at all: 'Many classical musicians have years of study behind them, built into their musical psyche, as well as incredible technique.' Still, it was a leap of faith for Bezaly. Once the two began playing, however, something remarkable happened. 'We developed a dialogue that felt very natural,' says Chan, 'It was like having a really stimulating conversation with someone.'

Oscar-nominated director Mike Figgis was at the studio where the two were playing. He began setting up microphones to capture the moment. The result is the free-form collection heard in Duology, released via Platoon. It's a complete breakaway from Bezaly's usual style, representing instead a single, impromptu afternoon. 'I would never eat chocolate or coffee before a recording session,' quips Bezaly, referencing the usually strict regime woodwind, brass players and singers tend to follow in such circumstances.

'Often, in improvised sessions it becomes highly competitive,' says Figgis, 'The musicians test each other. As soon as Rosey and Sharon played, you could see they were on the same wavelength. It was pure in the sense there was no real structural plan. They never discussed keys; they were in sync literally from the first bar.'

After Sunrise, Bezaly and Chan explore the landscape they have created. It's sparse, with a sense of gentle propulsion; as titles like Quantum Flow suggest. The central piece, Duology, sees the pair at their most innovative, with pianistic rolling hills and a soaring bird-like flute melody. No-one listening to Evolution would guess that this was anything out of the ordinary for Bezaly, who takes a virtuosic approach, with harmonically adventurous passages and flutter-tonguing. The one-day, one-moment theme is underlined in the closing track, Sunset, an inventive counterpart to the opening piece. The collection is ideal for streaming platforms where playlists for 'music for mindfulness/relaxation/meditation...' are increasingly popular, but this didactic aspect of music can exist happily alongside art for art's sake: 'Since the pandemic, I wanted to record music for meditation and healing; it’s something that is still very much needed in view of the state of the world today,' says Bezaly, 'It’s exciting for me to connect with audiences in this new way.'

Rose Chan:'We developed a dialogue that felt very natural, it was like having a really stimulating conversation with someone.' (Image courtesy of Platoon)

Chan has considerable experience in this area, having released several 'music therapy' styled albums, including Sonic Apothecary, which features Water is life, designed to induce calmness and ultimately, sleep (commissioned by World Sleep Society). Duology includes DreamState, a minimalistic focus on timbre and slowly turning sounds, which draws once more on music's therapeutic benefits. Although, calmness is in the eye of the beholder: what is perceived as a gentle sonic embrace by one, could be energising to another. 'I have a rock musician friend who listens to the album as part of a pre-stage routine,' says Chan.

Recording in one take is relatively rare in studio albums, and, without edits and retakes, the flowing energy of the session is all-the-more obvious. 'There's something special about knowing you're in a moment of time,' says Figgis. 'It's rare to find that sort of musical connection and flow state that we discovered on that day,' adds Chan. Bezaly agrees: 'There was utter trust between the three of us. The human contact was very deep and unique. For three hours, the world stopped'. Duology is an invitation to pause, to take a breath and reconsider – just as Bezaly and Chan did on that afternoon.

Duology is out now on Platoon.