“Superb musicianship, fuelled by impressive kinetic energy, makes J.S. Bach Suite III – A Living Organism an engaging and thoroughly rewarding listen that comfortably bridges three centuries of musical thought.” – UK Vibe/UK
Classically trained Swiss pianist and composer Michael Arbenz reimagines Bach through the lens of improvisation, groove and collective interplay on a new collaboration with the internationally acclaimed Atom String Quartet . Inspired by Bach’s iconic Orchestral Suite No. 3 in D Major , the album treats the original work as a living organism : music that continues to evolve beyond Bach’s time, reshaped through rhythmic elasticity, improvisation and an almost orchestral approach to colour and texture.
J.S. Bach Suite III – A Living Organism is set for release on July 3rd, 2026 .
Written for an ensemble featuring his longtime musical partner and brother Florian Arbenz on drums, and Poland’s acclaimed Atom String Quartet, the project is rooted in interaction and musical trust . The brothers have performed together for decades across a wide range of settings – including collaborations with Greg Osby, Dave Liebman and Ron Carter – developing an intuitive, highly responsive musical language that forms the foundation of the album. In the ASQ, they found an equally adventurous counterpart: one of the few string quartets able to combine a refined classical sound culture with groove, improvisation and a highly flexible approach to ensemble playing, allowing the music to move naturally between structure and spontaneity .
Rather than arranging Bach directly, Arbenz uses the suite as a compositional springboard . Familiar traces of Bach’s melodic language emerge throughout the music, but are continually opened into new harmonic and rhythmic terrain. Piano, strings and percussion shift seamlessly between tightly shaped written passages and moments of open interaction, creating music that feels simultaneously precise and unpredictable, like a living organism constantly developing from one shape into another.
A subtle electronic layer also runs through the album, with Arbenz incorporating Moog synthesizer textures to blur the boundaries between piano and strings, occasionally pushing the ensemble toward an almost electric sound world.
The project also reflects Arbenz’s long-standing dual perspective as both a classical performer and self-taught jazz improviser. After classical studies in Basel, he built an international career performing contemporary classical repertoire with figures including Pierre Boulez , while independently developing a personal improvisational jazz voice. His work with the acclaimed VEIN trio and collaborations with artists including Andy Sheppard, Dave Liebman, Greg Osby, Marc Johnson and Glenn Ferris have further shaped a compositional perspective that moves fluidly across genres and traditions.
With J.S. Bach Suite III – A Living Organism, Michael Arbenz creates music that bridges centuries of musical language while remaining rooted in curiosity, communication and the transformative possibilities of improvisation.
