The repertoire on this release was chosen intentionally, which would seem to suggest that the young musician has been engaged on a path "per aspera...

The repertoire on this release was chosen intentionally, which would seem to suggest that the young musician has been engaged on a path "per aspera ad astra," from darker realms to brighter pastures. For after the lightless Bogdanović steeped in minor tonalities, Arnold's Fantasy movements already include pure major chords, and even more of them can be found in Khalil's Hommage to Philip Glass, where minor and major thirds steadily alternate with one another, even continuing to resonate in silence after the piece is over. Thus, major prevails over minor, something that is certainly welcime in our increasingly dark times.