“From the festive music of rural Brazil, Colombia and Mexico to the rich harmonies of the choro and alloys in sound that characterize pure American jazz, the beautiful instrument known as the accordion has adapted to every social and musical context of the New World.” Teca CALAZANS et Philippe LESAGE
The Australian-British Sadie Harrison is no ordinary composer: she is also an archaeologist and a professional gardener. So it is hardly surprising that a fascination with historical artifacts and biological processes filters into her music. The instrumental miniatures on this recording are both slow and brutal, some of them mirroring ancient worlds and natural phenomena and others taking their starting point in the paintings of Brian Graham and Peter Sheppard Skærved, expressing visual and textural ideas in sound. All are first recordings.
REVIEW:
Australian-born and UK-based, Sadie Harrison took some time out from composition to work as an archaeologist and professional gardener, activities which nourish these new works, mostly written in the past four years. Her fascination with fragments, minutiae and painted miniatures has resulted in five groups of tiny pieces each lasting around three minutes or less. The shortest is 24 seconds! Gallery (Rooms I and II) for solo violin—19 musical glimpses to be played in any order—takes the paintings of the versatile violinist Peter Sheppard-Skaerved as a starting point. Hidden Ceremonies, for piano, explores prehistory as depicted through paintings by Brian Graham. Musical echoes, from Vaughan Williams to Stravinsky to Aghanistan and beyond, are woven into Harrison’s works, each glittering in their intensity.
Based on George Bernard Shaw's play, the 1967 television special Androcles and the Lion recounts the story of Androcles, the simple-hearted Christian tailor whose friendship with a lion saves himself and his friends from martyrdom in the Roman Colosseum. Set to music by Richard Rodgers, the cast includes British comedian Norman Wisdom as Androcles, Noel Coward as Caesar and features Ed Ames, John Cullum and Geoffrey Holder.
Tracks: 1. Opening 4:45 – Orchestra 2. Velvet Paws 5:45 – Norman Wisdom Dialogue: Norman Wisdom and Patricia Routledge 3. Follow in Our Footsteps 1:52 – Ed Ames and Chorus 4. Strangers 5:00 – Inga Swenson and John Cullum Dialogue: Inga Swenson and John Cullum 5. A Fine Young Man 6:45 – Ed Ames Dialogue: Ed Ames and Brian Bedford Strength Is My Weakness – Norman Wisdom and Ed Ames Dialogue: Norman Wisdom, Ed Ames, Inga Swenson and Brian Bedford 6. Gladiators’ Ballet 3:07 – Orchestra 7. The Emperor’s Thumb 2:47 – Noel Coward Dialogue: Noel Coward, Inga Swenson, Kurt Kasznar and Clifford David 8. No More Waiting 4:50 – Inga Swenson and John Cullum Dialogue: Norman Wisdom, Inga Swenson and John Cullum 9. The Arena Pantomime 3:55 – Norman Wisdom and Orchestra 10. Don’t Be Afraid Of An Animal 4:51 – Noel Coward and Norman Wisdom Dialogue: Noel Coward, Norman Wisdom and Bill Hickey 11. Reprise: No More Waiting 4:23 – Inga Swenson and John Cullum Dialogue: Noel Coward, Norman Wisdom, Ed Ames, Inga Swenson and John Cullum Velvet Paws – Norman Wisdom
More than 50 composers from 13 different countries contributed to this collection of music with computers. Their pieces represent major directions of how avantgarde composers utilize the potential of new technology. The Historical CD of Digital Sound Synthesis. Randall, James: Mudgett, Monologues for a Mass Murderer/ Sound examples of Jean-Claude Risset's Introductory Catalogue of Computer Synthesized Sounds.
