{"id":2089745,"date":"2026-08-12T08:00:17","date_gmt":"2026-08-12T05:00:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2089745"},"modified":"2026-08-12T08:00:17","modified_gmt":"2026-08-12T05:00:17","slug":"meet-katzpascale-the-chamber-music-duo-putting-audiences-in-a-trance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2089745","title":{"rendered":"Meet KatzPascale, the chamber music duo putting audiences in a trance"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>[analyse_image type=&#8221;featured&#8221; src=&#8221;https:\/\/www.nme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/katzpascale-elegy-interview-credit-press.jpg&#8221;]<\/p>\n<article id=\"template-id-2947849\" class=\"post-2947849 tdb_templates type-tdb_templates status-publish post\">\n<div id=\"tdi_65\" class=\"tdc-zone\">\n<div class=\"tdc_zone tdi_66  wpb_row td-pb-row\">\n<div id=\"tdi_67\" class=\"tdc-row stretch_row\">\n<div class=\"vc_row tdi_68  wpb_row td-pb-row\">\n<div class=\"vc_column tdi_70  wpb_column vc_column_container tdc-column td-pb-span12\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap tdb_breadcrumbs tdi_71 td-pb-border-top td_block_template_2 tdb-breadcrumbs \" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_71\">\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span>Features<\/span><span>Music Interviews<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap tdb_title tdi_72 tdb-single-title td-pb-border-top td_block_template_2\" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_72\">\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Meet KatzPascale, the chamber music duo putting audiences in a trance<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap tdb_single_subtitle tdi_73 td-pb-border-top td_block_template_2\" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_73\">\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<p>In stumbling upon a once-in-a-lifetime creative synergy, the saxophonist and cellist, co-signed by Fred Again.., are rewriting the rules of live music and making you cry in the process<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap tdb_single_author tdi_75 td-pb-border-top td_block_template_2 tdb-post-meta\" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_75\">\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-author-name-wrap\"><span class=\"tdb-author-by\">By<\/span> Laura Molloy<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap tdb_single_date tdi_76 td-pb-border-top td_block_template_2 tdb-post-meta\" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_76\">\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><time class=\"entry-date updated td-module-date\" datetime=\"2026-08-12T09:00:17+01:00\">12th August 2026<\/time><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"tdi_77\" class=\"tdc-row stretch_row_1400 td-stretch-content\">\n<div class=\"vc_row tdi_78  wpb_row td-pb-row\">\n<div class=\"vc_column tdi_80  wpb_column vc_column_container tdc-column td-pb-span12\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap tdb_single_featured_image tdi_81 tdb-content-horiz-left td-pb-border-top td_block_template_2\" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_81\">\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"696\" height=\"442\" class=\"entry-thumb\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/katzpascale-elegy-interview-credit-press-696x442.jpg\" alt=\"KatzPascale\" title=\"katzpascale-elegy-interview-credit-press\"><figcaption class=\"tdb-caption-text\">KatzPascale credit: Jake Webber<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"tdi_82\" class=\"tdc-row\">\n<div class=\"vc_row tdi_83  wpb_row td-pb-row\">\n<div class=\"vc_column tdi_85  wpb_column vc_column_container tdc-column td-pb-span12\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap tdb_single_content tdi_86 td-pb-border-top td_block_template_2 td-post-content tagdiv-type\" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_86\">\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<p><strong class=\"dropcap\">D<\/strong>uring KatzPascale\u2019s first show in Leeds earlier this summer, a 55-year-old man cried for the first time since his wedding. In their video diary of the tour, he appears on grainy film, bewildered as he and his wife tell the camera, as if delivering a testimony, how, before that night, tears hadn\u2019t fallen from his eyes since 2001.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>READ MORE:\u00a0<em>NME<\/em>\u2019s top 10 shows from The Great Escape 2026<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The response isn\u2019t uncommon for the live shows of saxophonist Sammi Katzmann and cellist\/vocalist Jenna Pascale, where audience members pour into the streets afterwards, heralding the experience as a catharsis, an awakening, perhaps even an exorcism. Since the first moment they began collaborating, they\u2019ve carved out an eclectic, cinematic take on neo-classical, able to stir dormant emotions in even the most stoic.<\/p>\n<div class=\"td-a-ad id_inline_ad0 id_ad_content-horiz-center\"><span class=\"td-adspot-title\">Advertisement<\/span><\/div>\n<p>Though previous coverage of the project may allude to the fact that Katzmann and Pascale met through a mutual friend, they tell <em>NME<\/em> a different story. After briefly colluding with each other, they explain in a deadpan manner that their first meeting actually took place when Katzmann was lifeguarding in Connecticut, and Pascale was drowning. \u201cAnd also being attacked by a shark,\u201d Pascale recalls, casually.<\/p>\n<p>They were friends for years since that fateful encounter, but only began making music together in 2024, after both reaching a point of frustration with the New York indie rock scenes they\u2019d been meandering separately. In part, it was the \u201chuge egos and lack of actual talent\u201d, as Pascale bluntly puts it, that had their patience wearing thin. \u201cThere was no thought behind a lot of these projects,\u201d she explains. \u201cThey were fun, but at a certain point I realised I\u2019d like to make something that actually made me feel some kind of way instead of just \u2018we\u2019re gonna drink a bunch of beer\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"KATZPASCALE - SPILL YOUR TIME - LIVE @ ZEBULON 6.10.2026\" width=\"696\" height=\"392\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/GetBDFFxxeE?feature=oembed&amp;enablejsapi=1\" frameborder allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<p>There was also an element of frustration with the fact that their instruments were constantly being reduced to mere background sound by bands attempting to adorn music that was, actually, quite boring. They had both been classically trained from a young age, but found themselves in sessions being asked to play three monotonous notes for \u201ctypically male indie rock bands when the front person is like, \u2018I need something to make my band more interesting\u2019,\u201d Katzmann explains. \u201cWe had both thought of music pretty negatively in different contexts throughout our lives, and we heavily bonded over that. We had similar intentions of wanting to make deeper, untraditional music and introduce classical into the pop world.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Soon after allying over their shared indifference, they decided to play a show together, with only one quick rehearsal beforehand. \u201cEveryone was standing, and when we started playing, everyone just sat on the floor and went into this trance,\u201d Pascale recalls. Though it was largely improvised, the emotional response from the audience and the undeniable feeling of kismet between them conjured the feeling that they had struck gold, and they began rehearsing together with the idea of making a more serious project.<\/p>\n<div class=\"td-a-ad id_inline_ad1 id_ad_content-horiz-center\">\n<h5 class=\"taboola-mid-article-title\">Recommended<\/h5>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong class=\"dropcap\">O<\/strong>ver the past two years, their sound has steadily been forged through a series of live shows for intimate audiences in museums, churches and galleries across New York. By treating the spaces they play in with almost equal importance to the music, they seek to create an environment wholly separate from the outside world; the room is usually shrouded in darkness, and audience members are welcomed to sit or even lie on the floor, leaving the weight of their bodies behind. At some gigs, they\u2019ve even blindfolded fans, intensifying the weight of the music. \u201cWe want people to feel that they came with something and then left with something different,\u201d Katzmann says. \u201cA lot of people, actually, end up feeling a lot lighter after our shows, which is great to hear. We don\u2019t like people leaving depressed, but it\u2019s usually a cathartic release of emotions.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In an age of detachment, terminal online-ness and AI, the gigs offer a sensation that feels increasingly hard to find. \u201cYou know when you\u2019re a kid, and you\u2019re lying awake at night, and you\u2019re just seeing shit in your brain before you fall asleep? I feel like we don\u2019t do that anymore because everyone is just putting a show on or scrolling,\u201d Pascale ponders. \u201c[The shows] are like putting you back to your child self and letting your imagination take over again.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cPlaying together is the ultimate distraction from all of the other distractions in the world\u201d \u2013 Sammi Katzmann<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>It\u2019s a notion carried into their debut EP \u2018Elegy\u2019, released earlier this year. The project is unique in that every song on it was played and perfected live for months before being recorded, with each gig in some way informing the way it exists today. It\u2019s why pressing play feels like bearing witness to two musicians born to play together, their instruments circling each other in a dialogue that drifts from deeply harrowing and frantic to delicate, sombre and, for brief moments, even sweet.<\/p>\n<p>Though unmistakably chamber music, the EP also contains elements of their eclectic range of influences, offering a sonic scrapbook that shifts from Ethiopian jazz in Katzmann\u2019s saxophone playing to references to their shared childhood love of The Beatles in the way Pascale\u2019s cello slides down in harmonic, repetitive overlapping on \u2018An Elephant Never Forgets\u2019 \u2013 a direct nod to \u2018Tomorrow Never Knows\u2019. Another key inspiration was \u2018Clube da Esquina\u2019, a collaborative album from Brazilian musicians Milton Nascimento and L\u00f4 Borges, which deeply informed Katzmann and Pascale\u2019s shared musical language. \u201cWe ultimately were very, very inspired by that album,\u201d Katzmann says. \u201cThe melodic ideas are just so, so rich and so, so sticky, as we like to say.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"td-a-ad id_inline_ad2 id_ad_content-horiz-center\"><span class=\"td-adspot-title\">Advertisement<\/span><\/div>\n<p>Since releasing \u2018Elegy\u2019, they\u2019ve embarked on what Pascale describes as \u201cthe best fucking summer ever\u201d (though she quickly adds: \u201cExcept the cursing. My dad read another interview of ours, and he\u2019s like, \u2018You\u2019re cursing every second.\u2019\u201d) They played their first UK tour, which included a show at London\u2019s St Pancras Old Church, where Fred Again.. slipped into the crowd incognito. He liked what he heard, and invited them to be involved in the recording for his recent collaborative mixtape with Latin Mafia, \u20189 Months &amp; 50 Hours\u2019, which saw them head to Mexico City to join the fully live-streamed, 50-hour creative process which culminated in the project.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was really incredible to watch Fred cook for so long; he\u2019s just a fucking genius,\u201d Pascale says. \u201cI know everyone talks about him a lot, but he really is just that guy who can work forever and get so much done so quickly. All the choices he makes are awesome. He\u2019s got a direct, open channel to fucking music heaven.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_3961924\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3961924\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-3961924 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/katzpascale-interview-credit-press.jpg\" alt=\"KatzPascale\" width=\"2000\" height=\"2913\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-3961924\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">KatzPascale credit: L.J. Ripley<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The experience introduced a desire for the duo to continue working and experimenting with more artists across every genre, from classical to rap. Dream collaborations, they say, would be Bj\u00f6rk and Lil Yachty, the latter of whom they already worked with indirectly on the \u20189 Months &amp; 50 Hours\u2019 mixtape, \u201cbut we\u2019d love to work with him directly as well,\u201d Katzmann says. \u201cWe just want to hit all different realms and learn from other people and see what we can create.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>A creative relationship like theirs is rare \u2013 one that spawns art which somehow, without words, can depict the deepest human experiences. It\u2019s a calling that cannot be ignored, which is why, they tell <em>NME<\/em>, new music is already on the way. \u201cPlaying together is the ultimate distraction from all of the other distractions in the world,\u201d Katzmann smiles. \u201cIt\u2019s like the reset button. When we play music, we can just be totally present and real in our own minds. And it\u2019s amazing to be able to extend that to others who are witnessing it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>KatzPascale\u2019s \u2018Elegy\u2019 EP is out now via Sonic Guck.\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap tdb_single_tags tdi_87 td-pb-border-top td_block_template_2\" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_87\">\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<ul class=\"tdb-tags\">\n<li><span>Related Topics<\/span><\/li>\n<li>Electronic<\/li>\n<li>KatzPascale<\/li>\n<li>Pop<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"tdi_88\" class=\"tdc-row stretch_row_content td-stretch-content\">\n<div class=\"vc_row tdi_89  wpb_row td-pb-row tdc-element-style\">\n<div class=\"vc_column tdi_91  wpb_column vc_column_container tdc-column td-pb-span12\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"td-block td-a-rec td-a-rec-id-custom-spot tdi_92 td_block_template_2\"><span class=\"td-adspot-title\">Advertisement<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"tdi_93\" class=\"tdc-row\">\n<div class=\"vc_row tdi_94  wpb_row td-pb-row\">\n<div class=\"vc_column tdi_96  wpb_column vc_column_container tdc-column td-pb-span12\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"vc_row_inner tdi_98  vc_row vc_inner wpb_row td-pb-row\">\n<div class=\"vc_column_inner tdi_100  wpb_column vc_column_container tdc-inner-column td-pb-span12\">\n<div class=\"vc_column-inner\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper td_block_wrap vc_raw_html tdi_102 \">\n<div class=\"td-fix-index\">\n<h3>More Stories<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap td_flex_block_1 tdi_103 td-pb-border-top td_module_flex_1--card td_module_flex_1--card--highlight td_block_template_2 tdc-no-posts td_flex_block\" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_103\">\n<div id=\"tdi_103\" class=\"td_block_inner td-mc1-wrap\">\n<div class=\"td_module_flex td_module_flex_1 td_module_wrap td-animation-stack\">\n<div class=\"td-module-container td-category-pos-above\">\n<div class=\"td-module-meta-info\">\n                    Festivals Blog<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"entry-title td-module-title\">Sombr and Dijon ripped up the rulebook on day one at Sziget Festival 2026<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_module_flex td_module_flex_1 td_module_wrap td-animation-stack\">\n<div class=\"td-module-container td-category-pos-above\">\n<div class=\"td-module-meta-info\">\n                    Film News<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"entry-title td-module-title\">\u2018KPop Demon Hunters\u2019 star Ejae says Leonardo DiCaprio was reason for vocal mistakes at BAFTAs: \u201cHe made me so nervous\u201d<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_module_flex td_module_flex_1 td_module_wrap td-animation-stack\">\n<div class=\"td-module-container td-category-pos-above\">\n<div class=\"td-module-meta-info\">\n                    Music News<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"entry-title td-module-title\">Olivia Rodrigo reveals Daisy Chain Fields stage times schedule with no overlapping sets<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_module_flex td_module_flex_1 td_module_wrap td-animation-stack\">\n<div class=\"td-module-container td-category-pos-above\">\n<div class=\"td-module-meta-info\">\n                    Music News<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"entry-title td-module-title\">Zara Larsson helps Sombr kick off first European festival headline set at Sziget<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_module_flex td_module_flex_1 td_module_wrap td-animation-stack\">\n<div class=\"td-module-container td-category-pos-above\">\n<div class=\"td-module-meta-info\">\n                    Music News<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"entry-title td-module-title\">Watch Jason Sudeikis join Mumford &amp; Sons to sing \u2018Ted Lasso\u2019 theme at Madison Square Garden<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_module_flex td_module_flex_1 td_module_wrap td-animation-stack\">\n<div class=\"td-module-container td-category-pos-above\">\n<div class=\"td-module-meta-info\">\n                    Music News<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"entry-title td-module-title\">Drum \u2018n\u2019 bass DJ Bou goes viral with track sampling flight attendant dealing with irate passenger, then brings her on stage in Las Vegas<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"tdi_104\" class=\"tdc-row\">\n<div class=\"vc_row tdi_105  wpb_row td-pb-row\">\n<div class=\"vc_column tdi_107  wpb_column vc_column_container tdc-column td-pb-span12\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper td_block_wrap vc_raw_html tdi_109 \">\n<div class=\"td-fix-index\">\n<h3>You May Also Like<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><span class=\"td-page-meta\"><\/span><span class=\"td-page-meta\"><span class=\"td-page-meta\"><\/span><\/span><span class=\"td-page-meta\"><\/span><\/article>\n<\/p>\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap tdb_single_content tdi_86 td-pb-border-top td_block_template_2 td-post-content tagdiv-type\" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_86\">\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<p><strong class=\"dropcap\">D<\/strong>uring KatzPascale\u2019s first show in Leeds earlier this summer, a 55-year-old man cried for the first time since his wedding. In their video diary of the tour, he appears on grainy film, bewildered as he and his wife tell the camera, as if delivering a testimony, how, before that night, tears hadn\u2019t fallen from his eyes since 2001.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>READ MORE:\u00a0<em>NME<\/em>\u2019s top 10 shows from The Great Escape 2026<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The response isn\u2019t uncommon for the live shows of saxophonist Sammi Katzmann and cellist\/vocalist Jenna Pascale, where audience members pour into the streets afterwards, heralding the experience as a catharsis, an awakening, perhaps even an exorcism. Since the first moment they began collaborating, they\u2019ve carved out an eclectic, cinematic take on neo-classical, able to stir dormant emotions in even the most stoic.<\/p>\n<div class=\"td-a-ad id_inline_ad0 id_ad_content-horiz-center\"><span class=\"td-adspot-title\">Advertisement<\/span><\/div>\n<p>Though previous coverage of the project may allude to the fact that Katzmann and Pascale met through a mutual friend, they tell <em>NME<\/em> a different story. After briefly colluding with each other, they explain in a deadpan manner that their first meeting actually took place when Katzmann was lifeguarding in Connecticut, and Pascale was drowning. \u201cAnd also being attacked by a shark,\u201d Pascale recalls, casually.<\/p>\n<p>They were friends for years since that fateful encounter, but only began making music together in 2024, after both reaching a point of frustration with the New York indie rock scenes they\u2019d been meandering separately. In part, it was the \u201chuge egos and lack of actual talent\u201d, as Pascale bluntly puts it, that had their patience wearing thin. \u201cThere was no thought behind a lot of these projects,\u201d she explains. \u201cThey were fun, but at a certain point I realised I\u2019d like to make something that actually made me feel some kind of way instead of just \u2018we\u2019re gonna drink a bunch of beer\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"KATZPASCALE - SPILL YOUR TIME - LIVE @ ZEBULON 6.10.2026\" width=\"696\" height=\"392\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/GetBDFFxxeE?feature=oembed&amp;enablejsapi=1\" frameborder allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<p>There was also an element of frustration with the fact that their instruments were constantly being reduced to mere background sound by bands attempting to adorn music that was, actually, quite boring. They had both been classically trained from a young age, but found themselves in sessions being asked to play three monotonous notes for \u201ctypically male indie rock bands when the front person is like, \u2018I need something to make my band more interesting\u2019,\u201d Katzmann explains. \u201cWe had both thought of music pretty negatively in different contexts throughout our lives, and we heavily bonded over that. We had similar intentions of wanting to make deeper, untraditional music and introduce classical into the pop world.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Soon after allying over their shared indifference, they decided to play a show together, with only one quick rehearsal beforehand. \u201cEveryone was standing, and when we started playing, everyone just sat on the floor and went into this trance,\u201d Pascale recalls. Though it was largely improvised, the emotional response from the audience and the undeniable feeling of kismet between them conjured the feeling that they had struck gold, and they began rehearsing together with the idea of making a more serious project.<\/p>\n<div class=\"td-a-ad id_inline_ad1 id_ad_content-horiz-center\">\n<h5 class=\"taboola-mid-article-title\">Recommended<\/h5>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong class=\"dropcap\">O<\/strong>ver the past two years, their sound has steadily been forged through a series of live shows for intimate audiences in museums, churches and galleries across New York. By treating the spaces they play in with almost equal importance to the music, they seek to create an environment wholly separate from the outside world; the room is usually shrouded in darkness, and audience members are welcomed to sit or even lie on the floor, leaving the weight of their bodies behind. At some gigs, they\u2019ve even blindfolded fans, intensifying the weight of the music. \u201cWe want people to feel that they came with something and then left with something different,\u201d Katzmann says. \u201cA lot of people, actually, end up feeling a lot lighter after our shows, which is great to hear. We don\u2019t like people leaving depressed, but it\u2019s usually a cathartic release of emotions.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In an age of detachment, terminal online-ness and AI, the gigs offer a sensation that feels increasingly hard to find. \u201cYou know when you\u2019re a kid, and you\u2019re lying awake at night, and you\u2019re just seeing shit in your brain before you fall asleep? I feel like we don\u2019t do that anymore because everyone is just putting a show on or scrolling,\u201d Pascale ponders. \u201c[The shows] are like putting you back to your child self and letting your imagination take over again.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cPlaying together is the ultimate distraction from all of the other distractions in the world\u201d \u2013 Sammi Katzmann<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>It\u2019s a notion carried into their debut EP \u2018Elegy\u2019, released earlier this year. The project is unique in that every song on it was played and perfected live for months before being recorded, with each gig in some way informing the way it exists today. It\u2019s why pressing play feels like bearing witness to two musicians born to play together, their instruments circling each other in a dialogue that drifts from deeply harrowing and frantic to delicate, sombre and, for brief moments, even sweet.<\/p>\n<p>Though unmistakably chamber music, the EP also contains elements of their eclectic range of influences, offering a sonic scrapbook that shifts from Ethiopian jazz in Katzmann\u2019s saxophone playing to references to their shared childhood love of The Beatles in the way Pascale\u2019s cello slides down in harmonic, repetitive overlapping on \u2018An Elephant Never Forgets\u2019 \u2013 a direct nod to \u2018Tomorrow Never Knows\u2019. Another key inspiration was \u2018Clube da Esquina\u2019, a collaborative album from Brazilian musicians Milton Nascimento and L\u00f4 Borges, which deeply informed Katzmann and Pascale\u2019s shared musical language. \u201cWe ultimately were very, very inspired by that album,\u201d Katzmann says. \u201cThe melodic ideas are just so, so rich and so, so sticky, as we like to say.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"td-a-ad id_inline_ad2 id_ad_content-horiz-center\"><span class=\"td-adspot-title\">Advertisement<\/span><\/div>\n<p>Since releasing \u2018Elegy\u2019, they\u2019ve embarked on what Pascale describes as \u201cthe best fucking summer ever\u201d (though she quickly adds: \u201cExcept the cursing. My dad read another interview of ours, and he\u2019s like, \u2018You\u2019re cursing every second.\u2019\u201d) They played their first UK tour, which included a show at London\u2019s St Pancras Old Church, where Fred Again.. slipped into the crowd incognito. He liked what he heard, and invited them to be involved in the recording for his recent collaborative mixtape with Latin Mafia, \u20189 Months &amp; 50 Hours\u2019, which saw them head to Mexico City to join the fully live-streamed, 50-hour creative process which culminated in the project.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was really incredible to watch Fred cook for so long; he\u2019s just a fucking genius,\u201d Pascale says. \u201cI know everyone talks about him a lot, but he really is just that guy who can work forever and get so much done so quickly. All the choices he makes are awesome. He\u2019s got a direct, open channel to fucking music heaven.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_3961924\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-3961924\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-3961924 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/katzpascale-interview-credit-press.jpg\" alt=\"KatzPascale\" width=\"2000\" height=\"2913\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-3961924\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">KatzPascale credit: L.J. Ripley<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The experience introduced a desire for the duo to continue working and experimenting with more artists across every genre, from classical to rap. Dream collaborations, they say, would be Bj\u00f6rk and Lil Yachty, the latter of whom they already worked with indirectly on the \u20189 Months &amp; 50 Hours\u2019 mixtape, \u201cbut we\u2019d love to work with him directly as well,\u201d Katzmann says. \u201cWe just want to hit all different realms and learn from other people and see what we can create.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>A creative relationship like theirs is rare \u2013 one that spawns art which somehow, without words, can depict the deepest human experiences. It\u2019s a calling that cannot be ignored, which is why, they tell <em>NME<\/em>, new music is already on the way. \u201cPlaying together is the ultimate distraction from all of the other distractions in the world,\u201d Katzmann smiles. \u201cIt\u2019s like the reset button. When we play music, we can just be totally present and real in our own minds. And it\u2019s amazing to be able to extend that to others who are witnessing it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>KatzPascale\u2019s \u2018Elegy\u2019 EP is out now via Sonic Guck.\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>[analyse_source url=&#8221;https:\/\/www.nme.com\/features\/music-interviews\/katzpascale-elegy-interview-radar-3961922&#8243;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[analyse_image type=&#8221;featured&#8221; src=&#8221;https:\/\/www.nme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/katzpascale-elegy-interview-credit-press.jpg&#8221;] FeaturesMusic Interviews Meet KatzPascale, the chamber music duo putting audiences in a trance In stumbling upon a once-in-a-lifetime creative synergy, the saxophonist and cellist, co-signed by Fred Again.., are rewriting the rules of live music and making you cry in the process By Laura Molloy 12th August 2026 KatzPascale credit: Jake Webber [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[226,78],"class_list":["post-2089745","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics","tag-crawlmanager","tag-nme-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2089745","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2089745"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2089745\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2089745"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2089745"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2089745"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}