From the venerable Erstwhile Records’ Bandcamp site: “”Transference is a dialogue of sonic gestures and traces of visits to places and the spirit that occupies them. It unfolds as a map of subtle and drastic differences, a space where the contours of sound and silence merge, and where listening becomes Continue Reading
Modern Classical
Avram & Dumitrescu – Performed by Hyperion Ensemble – Sacrum et Profanum
Ana-Maria Avram and Iancu Dumitrescu were a husband-and-wife duo renowned in the spectralism genre. Avram passed away suddenly in 2017, but her body of work continues to be performed regularly and is well-documented, as evidenced by this release. Dumitrescu remains active as a composer and, from the latest recordings I Continue Reading
Antonina Nowacka – Lamunan
Somewhere between the angelic and experimental lies the vocal work of Antonina Nowacka. From her Bandcamp site, and it’s quite a good read: “Forged alone in a cave on the island of Java, and recorded in a fortress in Poland, Antonina Nowacka’s “Lamunan” is an intimate exploration of a mysterious Continue Reading
Giorgi Koberidze – Forests, Tales, Cities, Forests
Now that the chaos of moving is settling down, I can finally take the time to listen to music properly again. My first proper listening session here in Tbilisi features a Georgian composer named Giorgi Koberidze. His style reminds me of Pascal Comelade—charmingly quirky yet filled with elements of electroacoustic Continue Reading
Yann Tiersen – Ker al Loch (Four Ways) EP
Not a single in the traditional sense, Yann Tiersen’s Ker al Loch (Four Ways) is a contemplative solo piano work that fits in well with his back catalog of contemporary classical music and soundtrack work. The gem of the EP for me was the track 11 5 18. 1 12. Continue Reading
Ahmed Essyad – Moroccan Electroacoustic Music
From the ever-magnificent Sub Rosa Label: “Composer Ahmed Essyad was born in Salé, Morocco, in 1938. After studying music at the Rabat Conservatoire (Morocco) he moved to Paris in 1962, where he became a student of Max Deutsch and, later, his assistant. Trained in the avant-garde practices of Western musical Continue Reading
Laibach – Alamut
This is the Laibach I grew up loving, taking a very different and radical direction in each new album. The industrial music lounge act was growing irritating, but it might have been because the band needed time to come up with brilliant ideas after dipping into the sonic well way Continue Reading
Steve Layton – Introspection
Our dear friend Steve Layton’s latest work is a collection of minimalist music, including the first work, Gospodi pomiluj (Lord have mercy) which has a, dare I say it, holy feel to it. I owe Steve a great debt for introducing me to many modern classical musicians through his website, Continue Reading
Alessandra Celletti – Stop Femicides
Femicide, like most other –cides, is a pernicious evil, and women suffer atrociously in parts of the world, but despite the provocative title, this album is more of a celebration of some rather amazing songs influenced by ladies, interpreted by our dear friend Alessandra Celletti. Some of the covers were Continue Reading
Brooklyn Rider – The Wanderer: Live From Paliesius, Lithuania
Brooklyn Rider are one of America’s best contemporary classical music quartets and they simply don’t receive the exposure they so richly deserve. In this album, the first six tracks are dedicated to modern composers like Osvaldo Golijov from Argentina and Gonzalo Grau, who hails from Venezuela. Both come from a Continue Reading