Umbrae
2016 release ** The four works on this CD, ranging in date from 2004 to 2014, form an integral part of Andrzej Kwiecinski’s creative development and at the same time demonstrate his particular affinity with music for strings. Umbrae (2004) for string quintet. Mural (2008-10) for string quintet. Luci nella noote V (2014) for four string quartet. Contregambilles (2014) for string quartet. After studying composition, musicology and Baroque singing (countertenor) in Warsaw, Kwiecinski moved in 2005 …
The ECM Recording
Marking the occasion of Steve Reich’s 80th birthday (hup, big man!), The ECM Recordings compiles three CDs of the venerable minimalist composer’s major works, which were consecutively released in 1978, 1980 and 1982, and continue to influence and inspire myriad forms of modern music. Named “our greatest living composer” (The New York Times), “America’s greatest living composer” (The Village Voice), and “…the most original musical thinker of our time” (The New Yorker), Reich’s ardent, incisive wo…
Dirt Road
Canadian composer Linda Catlin Smith's extended composition for violin and percussion in 15 parts, performed by percussionist Simon Limbrick and violinist Mira Benjamin, a unique orchestration that reveals a journey of steady pace, tension and beauty.
Volume
The second movement of 'Volume' by illogical harmonies (Johnny Chang - violin & Mike Majkowski - contrabass), a 55-minute piece from 2015, released on Another Timbre in June 2016 as part of the 'violin+1' series. A joint composition for violin and double bass, developed over six months in 2015 by violinist and Wandelweiser composer Johnny Chang with bassist Mike Majkowski, a fragile and beautifully revealing work in 5 parts that moves slowly through subtle harmonic changes.
Ordinary Objects and Other Distractions
In this episode, a number of short recordings of household objects and curious instruments become the core thematic material for a range of exquisitely conceived and realised pieces in which the recordings are shaped, stretched, tuned, combined and otherwise manipulated before being folded into a variety of musical structures with additional elements or parts added. Much use is made of rhythms derived from gravity – that is, dropping and bouncing - embedded into microtonal, poly-rhythmic and dee…
Die Natur der Klange: Neue Musik fur Harfe
Gabriele Emde-Hauffe was born in 1953 in Darmstadt, Germany. She received a humanistic education at a local grammar school in Darmstadt and started studying the harp after her A-levels, first in Darmstadt and finishing in Cologne. Conducted by Péter Eötvös, she worked out modern chamber music and modern improvisation by J. G. Fritsch and Vinko Globokar. Passing her exams in 1980 and 1981, she continued her studies of musical science at Cologne University, based on her thesis, "The Harp bet…
Piano Music And Transcriptions
Michael Habermann made the first, and in many respects the best commercial recordings devoted to Kaikhosru Sorabji’s ridiculously difficult and overwrought piano works. As with Habermann’s previous three Sorabji discs, the present recital offers several sides of the composer: variation writer, miniaturist, paraphraser, and transcriber. Sorabji’s 1945 transcription of Ravel’s Rapsodie espagnol largely stays faithful to the original, save for decorative showers of bitonal arpeggios and runs that a…
New Piano Works From Europe And The Americas
A debut recital of incredibly varied and fascinating music from Argentinean pianist Haydée Schvartz. Her teachers include Roberto Brando, Dora Castro and Nikita Magaloff. Ms. Schvartz continued her studies in London with Maria Curcio and subsequently received a a Fulbright Scholarship to study in Buffalo, New York with Yvar Mikhashoff, where she won the Cameron Baird Competition in 1990. Mikhashoff brought Ms.Schvartz's incredibly sensitive pianism to our attention, and together they imag…
The World Of Harry Partch
180 gram exact repro reissue, originally released in 1969. Classic Harry Partch, and the kind of record that's a great introduction to his music. There's lots of Partch's weird invented instruments – like chromelodeon, diamond marimba, mazda marimba, cloud-chamber bowls, gourd tree, and the crazy "spoils of war". "The World of Harry Partch collects three of his best short pieces. 'Daphne of the Dunes' (1967) is a side-long update of 'Windsong' written for dance. The melodic segments are given mo…
Broken Line
Alvin Lucier (b.1931) is the great American poet of acoustic phenomena. He has a keen sensitivity to the way objects vibrate, the way sound waves travel to our ears, and to the way our brain processes those vibrations. Trio Nexus is a Berlin based ensemble specializing in New Music. Carbon Copies seeks the recreation on musical instruments of sounds recorded in the environment. Here, the musicians prepare the piece by making their own 15-minute recordings 'of any indoor or outdoor environment.'…
1918 - 1993
The Society of Swedish Composers (FST) was founded in November 1918 as a professional association of full-time composers. Since then it has had a total of 269 members, including every composer of importance during this century. This recording works by 29 composers who have distinguished themselves, not only through their compositions but also within FST and in the cause of Swedish music generally.
Assigned #15
The leading contemporary music ensemble Apartment House perform a new piece developing out of James Saunders's long-term modular project '#unassigned'. The new piece, 'assigned #15', was recorded in April this year and creates a mesmeric, dense, jungle-like soundworld across its 45 minutes. Beautifully realised by Anton Lukoszevieze (cello), Bridget Carey (viola), Simon Limbrick (percussion), Nancy Ruffer (flutes), James Saunders (dictaphones & radio), Philip Thomas (piano) and Kerry Yong (chamb…
Complete Cello Works
This first complete recording of Roger Reynolds' cello works is being released to celebrate the composer's 80th birthday. This special 2-CD set contains many first recordings. French cellist Alexis Descharmes and Reynolds have a close artistic relationship which led to this composer supervised set. Alexis Descharmes is an internationally regarded musician and specialist in contemporary music. He has worked with the Ensemble Intercontemporain, Ensemble Alternance and Ensemble Court-circuit…
Fleurs d'X
Fabio Selvafiorita is a composer known to the public of experimental music for his massive musique-concrete work Death by Water composed with Valerio Tricoli. This CD is neither musique concrete or “extreme” experimental music: it's a CD of music for solo classical guitar. Consistent to the baroque guitar literature and its short musical forms, Fleurs d'X consists of musics written for a bard of an imaginary future kingdom's court. This is the best way to imagine this astonishing collection of m…
Two pianos and other pieces, 1953-1969
A double CD of music for multiple pianos from what is arguably the most experimental and interesting period of Morton Feldman's development as a composer. Some of the pieces have been very rarely performed or recorded, and have probably never been in better hands. The music featured on these two discs testifies to the intensity of Feldman's experimentation with notation and sound during the 1950s and 60s. Considering the works chronologically one senses the composer trying out, teasing and deve…
Zeus joueur de flutes
Alvise Vidolin (live electronics), Roberto Fabbriciani (flute)
Chamber Works 1992 - 2009
Double CD of composer-supervised recordings of 14 chamber pieces by a truly unique and individual voice in contemporary composition. Performed by the UK's leading experimental music ensemble Apartment House, who have championed Crane's music since the mid-90's. 'This is not minimalism. It does not take justification in 'less is more' or 'only what is necessary'. It takes us beyond those points: it is less than necessary. It says, basically, nothing is necessary. And perhaps, also, 'let's be hap…
Ensemble Works 3
'Palimpsest' (1979) for piano & ensemble. Cory Smythe, piano. 'Echange' (1989) for bass-clarinet & ensemble. Joshua Rubin, bass-clarinet. 'Akanthos' (1977) for soprano & ensemble. Tony Arnold, soprano. 'Thalleïn' (1984) for 16 instruments. 'O-Mega' (1997) for percussion & ensemble. Steven Schick, percussion & conductor. Steven Schick, conductor. 'Zythos' (1996) for trombone & 6 marimbas. Benny Sluchin, trombone.
An exhilarating Xenakis progran, built around works for soloist and ensemble. Most…
Onsets
Ici-bas' (2009) for ensemble & electronic sound. Hyperion Ensemble with members of Talea and the Bergersen Quartet. Tim Hodgkinson, conductor. 'Ulaaraar' (2005) for bass clarinet & strings. Tim Hodgkinson, bass clarinet and conductor. Ioan Marius Lacraru, Cornelia Petroiu, violas. Theodor Iancu, Andrei Kivu, cellos. Ion and Ciprian Ghita, basses. Anon, small gong. 'Amhas/Nirriti' [2001) for ensemble & electronic sound. Hyperion Ensemble. Tim Hodgkinson, conductor. 'Jo-Ha-Kyu' (2000-2010) for str…
Visitazioni
Two works from different periods come together in this "case-book": Ora (1997/2001) and Visitazioni (2011/ 2013). Times ... ways ... experiences intersect. Ora is a single stream of sounds and silences of 120 minutes. It can be "healed" (replaced) according to the feel of the listener. Its division into sections - like the same graphic score - have this unique feature. Headphone listening at a low volume is absolutely privileged. Visitazioni, referring to similar principles but changing the ways…