Annika Socolofsky - I Tell You Me album review Socolofsky's voice and the gorgeous sound of the ~Nois quartet never fails to give goosebumps of anticipation. Annika Socolofsky 's emotional song cycle, I Tell You Me , follows up on her previous album release Don't Say A Word . Taking a step back from the blunt rage in her first installment, I Tell You Me continues to explore queerness, but now through the lens of joy and celebration. With music and text by Socolofsky, I Tell You Me tears apart the traditional nursey rhyme "Sugar, Spice and Everything Nice", reinterpreting and expanding on original text segments to result in an empowering demonstration of self-expression. The album, releasing September 8th through Carrier Records , consists of the three-song cycle as well a remix of the three songs, each crafted by a different queer artist. While the concept of remix is certainly not new, it is incredibly unconventional, especially within the standard constraints o...

 John Luther Adams - Vespers of the Blessed Earth Vespers of the Blessed Earth confirms Adams' is unable to bring anything original to his music in well over a decade. John Luther Adams' Vespers of the Blessed Earth sounds exactly as one may expect from the composer. Written for the chamber choir The Crossing  and the Philadelphia Orchestra , Adams meant the large-scale work to be a series of five prayers for the Earth, rather than have any specific sacred meaning. The Vespers  continues Adams' implementation of outward environmental themes in his music and gives us little actual musical material. Vespers , as with much of Adams' output, is drudgingly slow-moving, with a focus on sustained drones, limited use of the orchestra, and ringing tintinnabulations. The main musical motifs presented throughout all five movements are a variety of ringing bells and modified bird song. In many ways, Vespers of the Blessed Earth confirms Adams' is unable to bring anything origin...

 Micah Behr - Breaking and Setting Composer and performer Micah Behr premiered a set of two companion pieces, Breaking and Setting , at the Stoughton Chamber Music Festival . Finishing its fifth season, Stoughton Chamber Music put on a "Sun & Moon" chamber concert series this summer, featuring a string septet and clarinetist Brad Cherwin . Behr's two pieces were written exclusively for the "Sun & Moon" concerts, with Breaking and Setting  representing a sunrise and sunset respectively.  While pretty pieces, Behr plays the musical symbolism a little heavy-handed, with both Breaking and Setting  sounding more akin to scoring practice for student level films. Behr's musical ideas are quite wonderful, but not orchestrated in a manner which fully supports the aesthetic. Breaking is so dense, with everyone playing all the time, it just becomes tiresome. While the solo clarinetist sounds great, having him always doubled at pitch with either viola or cello ...

 Samuel Adams - Current album review Most noticeably, all of  Current  focuses on how unconventional usage of programmed electronics interact with the acoustic properties of live instruments. Releasing September 8th on Other Minds Records , Current  presents three pieces, two of which are premiere recordings, by award-winning composer Samuel Adams . The titular work, String Quartet No. 2, Current , is framed by two shorter pieces, one for violin and piano, the other, Shade Studies , a series of electronic etudes for piano. Most noticeably, all of Current  focuses on how unconventional usage of programmed electronics interact with the acoustic properties of live instruments. Even though the music itself can be derogatorily labeled repetitive, Adams has established a unique individual way he can control sounds. Opening with Adams' own version of a pandemic piece, Violin Diptych portrays the same general form and feelings of emptiness in two different movements. Th...

 Michael Stubblefield - The Sludge Dirge The Sludge Dirge  expands naturally, culminating with unison marching thuds before relaxing into a tearful lament. Michael Stubblefield 's  The Sludge Dirge , winner of the ISAM 2023 first prize in composition, juxtaposes slow-moving lyrical lines and open vibrating space with thunderous bass drum booms, anxiety inducing runs and extended techniques. Stubblefield conducted the premiere of his chamber work for bass clarinet, violin, cello, and percussion earlier this August at the Landesakademie Ochsenhausen in Germany during the ISAM summer academy.  Stubblefield opens The Sludge Dirge  with bells tolling on a perfect fourth, before introducing a low, decadent chromatic half-step in the cello. The two intervals show up again and again throughout the piece, often creating various wails and sounds associated with crying. The somber beginning sets the perfect dramatic scene for the aptly titled 'dirge' to follow. Interestin...

 Matthew H. Schwarz - String Quartet No. 2 in C minor The Kodak Quartet essentially turn themselves into a classical rock band for the recording. Schwarz' s music revives outdated classical forms and thematic concepts with modern trends in popular and metal music. His latest release, String Quartet No. 2 in C minor , is performed and recorded here by the Kodak Quartet , who bring excitement to Schwarz's heavily rhythmic music. The four movement String Quartet No. 2  is laid out exactly as one may expect in terms of a cyclical classical structure: sonata form, scherzo, slow movement, and rehashing of previous themes. What makes the piece different is Schwarz's repetitive groove and aspiration of approachability. Clearly pulling from his past experience as a heavy metal guitarist, Schwarz writes with clear instrumental roles in mind. While at times only slightly adventurous within the realm of tonal harmony, the players are united by the established groove and basic roles (me...