Milton Babbit

Compositions performed by Bethany Beardslee and Lynne Weber (sopranos), Jerry Kudern and Robert Miller (pianos). The four works on this recording span a period of a decade and are among the best of Milton Babbitt’s output, tape and otherwise. Philomel, for soprano, recorded soprano, and synthesized sound, is one of the undisputed classics of electroacoustic music and this is its definitive recording. Two versions of Phonemena —one for soprano and piano, the other for soprano and tape— another virtuosic vocal piece written for the unique talents of Bethany Beardslee, are included on this recording. Post-Partitions (1966) for solo piano, and Reflections (1975), for piano and tape, contrast Babbitt’s complex yet pellucid writing for solo piano with that of his writing featuring the interplay between live performer and tape.