Carles Santos
Das wohlprä­par­ierte Klavier

The intention of the Spanish pianist, avant-garde musician and artist Carles Santos is to use musical means to unleash an elemental energy in order to burst their traditional forms of expression. “Carles Santos’ piano works often turn into actions in which the performer brings his body into play beyond the sounds. The path to performance or music theater is thus predetermined.”¹ For the limited editioned object Das wohlpräparierte Klavier, (The Well-prepared Piano) Santos has covered the keys of the instrument with pictures from porn magazines. From a distance, the flesh-colored keys may resemble darkened ivory, but playing the “well-prepared” piano inevitably becomes an act of explicit, sensual finger play. In his often highly erotically charged musical performances, photographs, films and videos, Santos also follows a call by Nam June Paik from the 1960s for more sexuality in music. Of the planned edition of six copies, two pianos and one grand piano were realized.
Text: Eva Scharrer

¹ René Block in the foreword to the catalog Carles Santos, Museum Fridericianum, Kassel 1998, p. 5.