John Derek Bishop

“PI” is a piano album by Norwegian producer and musician John Derek Bishop. He has recorded himself playing piano and cut these recordings into 16 short pieces of music. He has focused on creating a minimalistic, fragile and imperfect album. Many layers of piano create a rich sound and texture, and the microphones have been placed close to the piano for an intimate feeling. The album was made in a state of flow and meditation, and Bishop hopes the music will take the listener on an inward journey in thoughts and feelings.

The album is inspired by impressionist composers and neoclassical music.

Bishop usually uses big amounts of reverb and delay in his music productions, but in the album he has not used these effects resulting in a dry sound. All the piano recordings were done by Bishop with a focus on capturing something honest and imperfect. The album was mixed by Steven Bishop and mastered by Taylor Deupree. The cover art is made by Bishop.

“PI” is Bishop ́s fifth solo studio album and he has previously released music with Arve Henriksen, Nils Petter Molvær, Eivind Aarset, Jan Bang, Erland Dahlen, and more. His solo album from 2016 was nominated for the Norwegian Grammy (Spellemann) and his albums have received critical acclaim.

The album was funded by Komponistenes vederlagsfond, Norsk Komponistforening and FFUK.