Posts

Showing posts from September, 2022

PinkNoise Ensemble: 'eins' Concert

 PinkNoise Ensemble: eins  Livestreamed Concert PinkNoise Ensemble effectively combines the usually distant contemporary music concert with theatrics and programming to stimulate the audience. The recent concert on September 19th is a great example of engaging programming, with the concert climaxing in the world premiere of Simon Kanzler 's eins , a wild and twisting piece for Pierrot ensemble. The work is preceded by a selection of short chamber works by composers Francesco Filidei, Carolyn Chen, Ann Cleare, and Natacha Diels. The concert ends with a simple, yet moving, work by Charles Uzor, George Floyd in Memoriam . Uzor has all members stand in darkness and silence for 8 minutes and 46 seconds. While a fitting and emotional tribute, it could be argued that the piece takes advantage of the political nature of the event for the composer's personal gain. PinkNoise  showcases the future of chamber music by combining virtuosic players, various forms of improvisation, and i...

Wynton Marsalis - Tuba Concerto

Wynton Marsalis -  Tuba Concerto Marsalis ' Tuba Concerto , premiered by Carol Jantsch  and the Philadelphia Orchestra  last December, can now be heard on the Sunday Afternoon Classical Archive (listen here ). The work passes through various jazz genres in the form of four movements, each with different stylistic idioms required of the soloist and orchestra. Jantsch has absolutely no problem keeping up with Marsalis' compositional style, however, the strings clearly struggled to emulate the bebop lines present in the final movement. Jantsch also got a chance to showcase her skill at performing multiphonics in the first movement, a technique which she says is relatively new to her. Overall, the work is exactly what is to be expected from esteemed jazz composer and performer Marsalis: an incredibly delightful, audience-pleasing work which puts the soloist, Jantsch, through an intense technical gambit.

Kristina Socanski - "Philip Glass: Piano Solo"

Image
 Kristina Socanski -  "Philip Glass: Piano Solo" album review Too often Glass' brand of minimalism is deemed robotic and unemotional; to combat such, Socanski redefines what the music offers the performer and listener. In her recent interpretation,  Kristina Socanski  creates a sense of beauty not often heard when listening to performances of Philip Glass' music. Socanski's second album release, consisting of a curated selection of Glass' solo piano pieces from across two decades, equally touches seasoned and amateur listeners with minimalist waves tinged with hints of pianistic romanticism. Too often Glass' brand of minimalism is deemed robotic and unemotional; to combat such, Socanski redefines what the music offers the performer and listener. She masks the mathematical repetitive structures behind the curtain, finally letting one experience the universal affect of this distinct musical world. Find the album here on the Oclassica label. equally touches ...