Iceland Symphony Orchestra; Daníel Bjarnason, conductor.
Anna THORVALDSDOTTIR: CATAMORPHOSIS
Missy MAZZOLI: Sinfonia (for Orbiting Spheres)
Daníel BJARNASON: From Space I Saw Earth
María Huld Markan SIGFÚSDÓTTIR: Clockworking for Orchestra
Bára GÍSLADÓTTIR: ÓS
Sono Luminus DSL-92267
Release Date: April 28, 2023
Format: CD & Blu-ray audio disc
Duration: 58:57
Giorgio Koukl | 1 MAY 2023
In this very interesting release of five orchestral works, the Iceland Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Daniel Bjarnason, presents some new music by mostly Icelandic composers. The only non-Icelandic presence is the well-known US composer Missy Mazzioli.
Sono Luminus DSL-92267
The longest work, at more than 20 minutes, is CATAMORPHOSIS by Anna Thorvaldsdottir, a ponderous work of strange beauty closely resembling the landscapes Iceland offers in great abundance. Ms. Thorvaldsdottir, the composer-in-residence of the Reykjavik orchestra, operates mainly with orchestral clusters, where no thematic material or rhythmical elements are present.
Nonetheless, the music is never dull or heavily constructed but always maintains the listener’s attention. Certain moments are particularly interesting, such as the emergence of the tonal major chord played by all strings, which is quite cathartic in its nascent power. Sometimes a “pianoforte preparato” is used, where objects, like rubber, wood, or metal, are placed on the piano strings producing strange and sometimes very effective sounds. While this is okay for this sort of music, it is nevertheless a quite oldish and overused feature, which today must be applied only sparingly. All composers present on this CD are masters of orchestration, but Ms. Thorvaldsdottir is usually on a higher level, so this is probably only a minor glitch.
If something is in common to all these scores, it is the extensive use of orchestral glissandi, which are nice to be made by strings, and a little bit more complicated to do with winds. Well, either this orchestra is particularly gifted in this field or a certain “technical help” was kindly provided by the sound engineers. Anyway, the sonic landscape treatment level is extremely impressive, probably much helped by the superior acoustic of the concert hall, Harpa, where the orchestra resides.
Missy Mazzioli delivered a score called Sinfonia (for Orbiting Spheres), where a completely different approach can be observed. This music is far more traditional in its use of melodic elements and clever rhythmical construction. Once again, we can note the great capacity of orchestration, clever use of percussion, and a perfect choice of instruments. The only concern is the overuse of certain too Hollywood-like elements, which would be fine in a film score, but in the middle of these very Nordic sonorities seems slightly out of place.
The next piece, From Space I Saw Earth, was written by the conductor, Daníel Bjarnason. He is the only male composer of the whole CD, and it has to be said that his score is the less impressive. He, too, uses orchestral masses and sonorities with little melodic material or solo instruments coming out, as Ms. Thorvaldsdottir does, but in the end, no magic happens.
The nice idea of María Huld Markan Sigfúsdóttir to build a big crescendo lasting nine minutes (Clockworking for Orchestra), while certainly used extensively in the past, in her interpretation and with the help of a superior work of the conductor produces an impressive result. Especially the moment, around the third minute, where the “clock” starts to work, one can easily recall the words of Genesis: “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, and darkness was over the surface of the deep…”
The last track of this installment is a work of Bára Gísladóttir called ÓS. If there is a score where one has to wonder “why use a symphonic orchestra?” it is this. The composer may have been better served using electronic means only to realize her ideas instead of a full 90-person orchestra. Anyway, the Iceland Symphony orchestra is doing an incredible job applying all the possible out-of-usual playing techniques like “col legno tratto” or knocking on different parts of the instruments, creating so a landscape of a peculiar sound somehow resembling the music in concerts at the famous Parisian Le Centre Pompidou led by Pierre Boulez in the sixties.
This CD might not be music for everybody, but if you want to explore new music trends, this is certainly an excellent way to do so. ■
EXTERNAL LINKS:
- Iceland Symphony Orchestra: en.sinfonia.is
- Daníel Bjarnason: harrisonparrott.com/artists/daniel-bjarnason
- Bára Gísladóttir: baragisladottir.com
- Missy Mazzoli: missymazzoli.com
- María Huld Markan Sigfúsdóttir: mariasigfusdottir.com
- Anna Thorvaldsdottir: annathorvalds.com
Read more by Giorgio Koukl.
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