As far as I can make out, ‘entelecheia’ means “the realisation of potential”. The idea is that many things in nature have potential, but it can only be realised when the conditions are right. So, for example, an acorn has the potential to become a mighty oak tree, but it can only fulfil that potential if it falls on fertile soil and is given time to grow. Or, as the artwork here suggests, a woman has the potential to bring new human life into the world and, thereby, advance and enrich society.

I think we can assume, then, that the Entelecheia album by Max Clouth and his collaborators is offered as the fulfilment of the band leader’s musical potential. Or, at least, a significant step along that road.

“Born in Frankfurt in 1985, Max Clouth studied Jazz guitar in Germany and then went to India to learn Hindustani music from Pandit Nayan Ghosh. The double-necked guitars he developed with guitar maker Philipp Neumann are based on oriental and Indian stringed instruments such as the oud or sarod. With his group Ragawerk/Max Clouth Clan, he has developed a musical style inspired by the Mahavishnu Orchestra, Kraftwerk, Led Zeppelin, Indian classical music and contemporary electronics.”

The Max Clouth website

All of those styles emerge like green shoots germinating from seeds newly-sown in fresh Mother Earth. There they take root, bloom and flourish to make beautiful music for a New Age sound garden café. The seats are comfortable, the coffee is excellent, and the pastries are divine. With Entelecheia on repeat, we could stay here all day.