There is something of the eternal storyteller about Bjørnstad, whether in literature or music, with his seemingly endless desire to spin story after story that seems to grow in direct proportion to the passing years. It's almost as if his journey through life refl ects the old adage that we have so little time, but so much to say. This two-CD set of 16 solo piano recitals – and recital is not too strong a word – is reflective of this; at once compelling, even at slower tempi, but always arresting. Somehow his work for ECM seems to have a creative edginess that his work elsewhere – for example The Rainbow Sessions – does not. Even though Manfred Eicher was not present in the studio when these pieces were recorded, perhaps their ultimate destination may have something to do with a certain creative tension, who knows? But there is clarity here as the storyteller makes every word count, compelling our attention until he arrives at the dénouement.