Two extraordinary keyboard virtuosos are in the foreground these performances by the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Peter Rundel and Emilio Pomàrico, respectively. Wolfgang Mitterer, born in East Tyrol in 1958, has made name for himself as both a composer and an organist. In this performance of his extensive composition Crush 1-5, he himself takes the role of the improvising soloist, who in a most virtuosic manner transcends the electronically extended orchestral part. The second virtuoso is internationally renowned pianist Nicolas Hodges, who has won particularly high regard in the contemporary music community. In this live recording he dedicates himself to the finely-carved soundscapes of Isabel Mundry's second piano concerto, Non-Places (2012). According to the composer, the concerto represents an attempt to musically capture the scenery of an airport, a strange non-place between bustling activity and the solitary state of waiting.
A**S
Superb contemporary classical -- two exciting works for orchestra and keyboards
This is an excellent disc of contemporary music in the Musica Viva series, two world premiere performances and recordings from January and February 2013 in Munich:Wolfgang Mitterer (b. 1958)Crush 1-5 for orchestra, organ, and electronics (2012 -- 43'49)Wolfgang Mitterer, organSymphonieorchester des Bayerischen RundfunksPeter Rundel, conductor"Crush" is not a concerto, but is symphonic in scope, moving through sections titled Agitato, Sospirando, Attacca, Con calore, and Rapido. This is no traditional sonata form -- Mitterer describes the structure of the incredibly lively and dynamic orchestral score as "a succession of states, of episodes cut and arranged almost like a film." The organ part is improvisatory, but there are no solo lines, rather the chords serve as "virtuoso superelevation" of events in the orchestra. The electronics are never obtrusive, but rather function as "acoustic scenery," coloring and expanding the acoustic sounds.This is an engaging contemporary piece I would recommend to anyone. While exciting, it is not nearly as challenging as Mitterer's Coloured Noise for ensemble, electronics, and organ from 2005 (see my review), which I'm confident holds more appeal for free jazz afficionados than classical music listeners.Isabel Mundry (b. 1963)Non-Places for piano and orchestra (2008/2012 -- 25'57)Nicolas Hodges, pianoSymphonieorchester des Bayerischen RundfunksEmilio Pomarico, ConductorIsabel Mundry's superb piano concerto "Non-Places" builds on her fantastic earlier piano concerto "Ich und Du" , commissioned for the Donaueschinger Musiktage 2008 (see my review). The earlier work has strong, sleek contours, and by contrast this one more resembles a nocturne, rather mysterious and inward-sounding. Rather than examining the I-You relationship, "Non-Places" is based on the idea of public places where one can lose one's self in the chaotic flow of people in transit. Nicholas Hodges is excellent as always. There is a vocal part, reading poetry by Oswald Egger, that the liner notes describe as being recited by the pianist. But listening to the recording it is clear that the reading is done by the entire orchestra, or at least large numbers of orchestra members, functioning as sort of a Greek chorus to the piano. The piece opens with the crowd laughing, and as it returns it is meant to suggest the crowds in public places.--- --- --- --- ---This is one of the best new sets of contemporary classical music I have discovered recently. I hope it finds a wide audience, though that seems highly unlikely. The SBR (Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks) is to be commended for commissioning and performing these works!
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