With his trio, the Swiss pianist Florian Favre has released several successful albums and earned himself an outstanding international reputation. His latest work so far was his solo album Idantitâ, which was released in January 2022 to great acclaim. Firstly because of Favre's personal, very free reinterpretations of popular songs from his home region of Fribourg in western Switzerland. And secondly because of the unique sound facets that Favre created by manipulating the grand piano. The Bernese newspaper Der Bund praised: "His deconstructions and transformations of these great songs into jazzy, delicate, intricate soundscapes are [...] enchanting, oppressive and liberating at the same time." SWR2 radio praised the "charming originality" and concluded: "Favre's album of memories is an exceptionally successful search for his own identity". And BR2 Klassik radio said: "He is an outstanding jazz soloist - and his music spreads its wings and begins to fly.”
While working on the solo album, the idea arose already to "further reshape and dissect the musical material, in a kind of artistic permaculture: work with what is there, build on it and recycle it," explains Florian Favre. It should be mentioned that Idantitâ's repertoire also includes pieces written by him, that he sees as a tribute to the surroundings and the history of Fribourg. In the year following the album's release, he played around 40 solo concerts and was able to arrange the first two band shows for June 2023 at the Altitudes Festival in Fribourg. Three months later, two further performances followed at the Théâtre de L'Échandole in Yverdon-les-Bains, where the recordings of Idantitâ # Revisited were made.

The international ensemble's line-up alone gives the pieces an unexpected and individual character. Favre deliberately chose musicians who live in Switzerland, but have very different musical influences and experiences.
Born in 1986 and raised in Fribourg, Florian Favre first learned classical piano, then studied jazz piano and composition in Bern. In the summer of 2019, he moved back to Fribourg, or more specifically to a suburb outside of the city. The forced breaks due to the corona pandemic confronted Favre with the question "who and what I actually am when I can no longer do what I usually do." Reflecting on his own identity led to new compositions and a deeper exploration of his own history. "I come from a large family where we sang a lot, but I hadn't been particularly interested in this tradition so far."

That changed now. Favre did some research and found what he was looking for, particularly in the works of the composer Joseph Bovet (1879-1951), who is said to have written around 2,000 secular and sacred pieces as a pastor and bandmaster. "His pieces are part of our collective memory and of this special choir tradition that we have in the canton of Fribourg." Claire Huguenin also grew up with this heritage and is familiar with it, Favre says. "She deals with it very creatively, is not afraid to break conventions and brings her very rocky and eccentric touch."

Of course, Florian Favre also sees his current band as a representative for social changes and perspectives. "I'm against purism and conservatism, one should be able to explore new paths. Encounters with other lifestyles, world views or music are an enormous source of inspiration." With Idantitâ # Revisited, Florian Favre shows how traditions can be updated and how enriching diversity can be in a wonderfully lively and highly convincing way.