Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Harrison Birtwistle: Chamber Music

5

Harrison Birtwistle: Chamber Music

By

View read count
Harrison Birtwistle: Chamber Music
Released in celebration of composer Harrison Birtwistle's 80th birthday; his Chamber Music on the ECM label, is a collection of introspective, minimalistic and superbly abstract mesmerizing works. The four pieces share a subtle yet definite theatricality and a sense of deep contemplation that has a visceral impact.

His "Trio" opens with pianist Till Fellner's furious, rapid-fire percussive notes followed by the gentle brooding strings. This contrast sets a tense ambience that is maintained throughout the composition by alternating Fellner's independent and assertive monologues with violinist Lisa Batiashvili's and cellist Adrian Brendel's angular yet supremely lyrical duets. The trio only plays together briefly in a cinematic conversation that features Batiashvili's agile and expressive bowing together with Fellner's sparse, evocative tones and Brendel's pizzicato punctuation. The stimulatingly vivid divergence is not only between piano and strings but there is also an intriguing and provocative stylistic distinction between Batiashvili and Brendel. While the former has a radiantly supple eloquence the latter brings an understated and darkly hued quietism to the performance.

Brendel showcases his versatility and his nimbleness on "Bogenstritch —Meditations on a poem of Rilke" incidentally written for his father the late pianist Alfred Brendel. Sandwiched between baritone Roderick Williams' two Lieds are three reflective piano and cello dialogues that range from the sparse and hypnotic "Variations" to the poetic and fiery "Lied Ohne Worte." On the latter Brendel's angular and melancholic solo demonstrates brief bursts of passion while on the former both him and Fellner make deft use of silent pauses to weave their musical tale. Fellner's thick chords and Brendel's furiously alternating con-arco and pizzicato flourishes flow in a tight, rhythmical dance on the stimulating "Wie Eine Fuge," the fourth movement of this absorbing opus. Williams' haunting, buttery voice unfurls over Fellner's carefully scattered keystrokes with mysticism on the first song while his smooth, pleading articulation glides over Brendel's reverberating strings on the last with a prayer like spirituality.

But Brendel's shining hour is his sublime accompaniment to soprano Amy Freston's entrancing interpretation of twelve of objectivist poet Lorine Niedecker's short yet complex and compelling verse. Their superb camaraderie allows them to seamlessly reflect Niedencker's haiku like serene wisdom. Brendel's bowed phrases, ending in a thump of plucked strings, set an expectant ambience around Freston's immaculate, chant like singing on "Always North of Him." Freston's vocals rise and fall in nimble, and fragile beauty over Brendel's shimmering, undulating tones on "O Late Fall." Meanwhile on the "Hear Where Her Snowgrave Is" Brendel sets a somber atmosphere for Freston's evocative and mournful aria.

With this series of intimate, often dramatic, frequently pensive and always captivating musical creations, Birtwistle demonstrates why he is one of the most compelling and innovative living composers. The disc, with its impeccable sound, is both emotionally and intellectually gratifying.

Track Listing

Three Settings of Lorine Niedecker; Trio; Bogenstrich Meditations on a poem of Rilke; Nine Settings of Lorine Niedecker.

Personnel

Lisa Batiashvili: violin; Adrian Brendel: cello; Till Fellner: piano; Amy Freston: soprano voice; Roderick Williams: baritone voice.

Album information

Title: Chamber Music | Year Released: 2014 | Record Label: ECM Records

Tags

Comments


PREVIOUS / NEXT




Support All About Jazz

Get the Jazz Near You newsletter All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.

Near

More

Tramonto
John Taylor
Ki
Natsuki Tamura / Satoko Fujii
Duality Pt: 02
Dom Franks' Strayhorn
The Sound of Raspberry
Tatsuya Yoshida / Martín Escalante

Popular

Old Home/New Home
The Brian Martin Big Band
My Ideal
Sam Dillon
Ecliptic
Shifa شفاء - Rachel Musson, Pat Thomas, Mark Sanders
Lado B Brazilian Project 2
Catina DeLuna & Otmaro Ruíz

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.

Install All About Jazz

iOS Instructions:

To install this app, follow these steps:

All About Jazz would like to send you notifications

Notifications include timely alerts to content of interest, such as articles, reviews, new features, and more. These can be configured in Settings.