Music for Rudolf Bauer

Cheryl Pyle - flute, Urbuli Baba - drums, Max Ridgway - guitar & bass. Recorded February 2024. Rudolf Bauer was a German abstract painter whose work became well-known through the patronage of Solomon R. Guggenheim who but several of Bauer's works. In 1936, Bauer traveled to the United States to attend an exhibition of his works. Upon his return to Germany, he was arrested by the Gestapo and charged with the creation of "degenerate art". The artist was confined to prison for several months but eventually freed after the intervention of Guggenheim on his behalf. In 1939, he wisely left Germany and emigrated to the United States. In view of the fact that the spirit of Nazism seems to be reasserting itself in our modern world, I take special pride in offering this musical tribute to an artist who defied the Nazis and continued to produce modernist art despite the risks to his own life and freedom.