Derek Bermel - Intonations album review His music expands classical music's intonation system in an audience friendly manner. Intonations is Derek Bermel 's second album released on Naxos ' "American Classics" series. The album explores Bermel's roles as both composer and clarinetist, accompanied by the JACK Quartet  and electric guitarist Wiek Hijmans . The titular track, Intonations , takes advantage of JACK's extreme technical command as an ensemble to explore subtle, yet intense divulsions into microtonality. In the first movement, "I. Harmonica", Bermel alternates between justly tuned and slightly detuned chords, literally mimicking the sound of a blues harmonicist overblowing and bending pitches. Bermel's implementation of pleasing microtonality continues through the next two movements, in the forms of a hymn and hustle dance. Intonations cyclically concludes by reviving the original harmonica motive from the opening of the entire pie...

 Kim Diehnelt - Yarmouth Time Yarmouth Time  is an example of 'lite' twenty-first century classical music. Yarmouth Time , composed by Kim Diehnelt , is a simple, yet elegant duo for violin and violoncello. The piece was composed during her time wintering in Yarmouth, Maine, where she wished to capture the town's "natural beauty." The duo was released on the recent album,  Moto Finale , featuring Trio Casals on the Navona label. Diehnelt's piece is brought to life by two members of the trio, Alexandr Kislitsyn on violin and Ovidiu Marinescu on cello. Yarmouth Time  is an example of 'lite' twenty-first century classical music. The harmonic soundworld aims to pacify the general, non-musically literate public. The overarching form is also approachable: a slow, open introduction gives way to a fun and quirky groove in the form of running sixteenth notes. Diehnelt then contrasts the jittery opening with an icy glacier of static harmonics, before returning ...

 Jane Antonia Cornish - Ocean By the end of the piece, one is so enamored with the calmness that the final bar comes and goes without any notice. Composers have tried their hand to musically emulate the roaring waves of the ocean time and time again throughout all of history. Thus it comes to no surprise that Jane Antonia Cornish ’s Ocean does the same. What is surprising is her method of achieving such sonorous ripples: writing a work for six grand pianos. Her new album "Sierra" is a collaborative effort with Bang on a Can 's pianist Vicky Chow , and comprises of a collection of music for multiple pianos. Published by Cantaloupe Music , "Sierra" is five tracks of Chow overdubbing and accompanying herself on pianos, culminating in the wild ride of the titular track. Ocean  distinguishes itself from the album by its sense of perpetual motion. Chow expertly navigates the challenge of recording herself six times, with the result sounding as one giant grand piano, ...