Tom Johnson

2009 release **

"In case you're surprised to find a Tom Johnson album on Wandelweiser – after all, I reckon there are more actual notes on Counting Keys than on the rest of the albums released on the über-redux label put together – it's worth remembering that Tom Johnson and Wandelweiser prime mover Antoine Beuger know and greatly respect each other's work. This collection of four pieces spanning nearly three decades of Johnson's career is one of the composer's more accessible (though no less rigorous, mathematically) releases, and a good entry point into his oeuvre for those not familiar with it. The title track is good, honest, Music As A Gradual Process minimalism, the pleasure of listening to it derived from simply figuring out and following what's going on. Once you've worked out what the process is, you know where the music's heading, and when it gets there, it stops, simple as that. But the mathematical procedures behind the later works on offer – Organ and Silence for Piano (2002) (it sounds better on piano than it did on organ, but then again you know what I think about organs), Tilework for Piano (2003) and Block Design for Piano – are more elusive, and it takes many patient and rewarding listens to work into the deep structure of the music. If you usually head to Wandelweiser for peace and quiet, you might find this all a little too busy, but if, as it should be, you're in search of craftsmanship, compositional rigour and exemplary performance (hats off to pianist John McAlpine), you'll find much to enjoy  "