From the venerable
Nonesuch
label comes this fascinating release of music by American composer
Timo Andres
, whose works here are difficult to classify. They refer to older music, and
The Blind Banister
refers to
Beethoven
's
Piano Concerto No. 2 in B flat major, Op. 19
, and specifically to a cadenza
later appended to his early work. Yet
Andres
' music is in no way neoclassical. Its surfaces are also too varied to allow the postminimalist label, although that seems to be
' point of departure. One of his influences is surely
John Adams
, and he has a way of grappling with raw musical materials that brings
Charles Ives
to mind. Two of the three works here are concertos:
is for piano and orchestra, and the three-movement
Upstate Obscura
is a cello concerto. That work plays on the traditional solo-tutti dynamic in interesting ways, and the entr'acte, the solo piano work
Colorful History
, explores the chaconne ground bass form, putting the bass pattern in the foreground. With sensitive performances from
, cellist
Inbal Segev
in
, and the fine contemporary music group
Metropolis Ensemble
, this is an ideal release for those wanting to explore this unique composer's work. ~ James Manheim