ALBUM OF THE WEEK: Gerald Cohen’s “Sea of Reeds”

Posted on January 12, 2015 by maestrobeats

Of all common woodwind instruments, the clarinet has the largest pitch range. And with over a dozen types of clarinets in its instrument family—with most clarinets ranging around four octaves—the musical possibilities are endless.

Composer Gerald Cohen is exploring that vast ocean of possibilities in his new album for clarinet and chamber ensemble, Sea of Reeds.

“The album is a continuation of my exploration of the clarinet,” Cohen said. “Clarinet has always been an instrument that I love, though I’ve never played a wind instrument. Because it’s so varied in its timbre, range and dynamics, it’s just a wonderful instrument whenever you have a small ensemble, because it gives a lot of varied character and different kinds of sounds to the ensemble.”

The compositions explore the clarinet’s colorful palette of sounds by combining elements of classical, Jewish, and jazz music. A singer and pianist himself, Cohen’s music is heavily influenced by vocal music and lyrical melodies.

“My style is generally within the modern classical realm,” Cohen said. “It tends to be very lyrical and dramatic.”

Cohen’s music is also inspired by his work as a synagogue cantor at Shaarei Tikvah in Scarsdale, N.Y., and as a teacher of cantors at the Jewish Theological Seminary and Hebrew Union College.

“All those three roles—of composer, cantor, and teacher—all nourish and enrich each other,” Cohen noted. “I love the idea of taking materials of Jewish music and Jewish text and writing them in my music in a way that is making it part of concert music; seeing those two worlds come together in very fruitful and interesting ways, and in artful ways as well.”

In fact, the album’s title track, “Sea of Reeds” is a set of instrumental arrangements of five of Cohen’s songs on sacred texts. The piece is performed by the Grneta Ensemble, which is made up of clarinetists Vasko Dukovski and Ismail Lumanovski and pianist Alexandra Joan. The piece maintains the melodic expressiveness of the original songs while exploring new timbral and textural possibilities, showcasing both clarinetists’ virtuosity as they gracefully dance through swelling melodies and delicately intertwining musical motifs.

The Grneta Ensemble is also featured in Cohen’s “Grneta Variations.” In fact, Cohen wrote both “Sea of Reeds” and “Grneta Variations” with the ensemble in mind. Having worked closely with the trio over the past five years, Cohen was inspired by their virtuosic playing in both classical and folk music realms.

“To have developed the musical and personal relationship with [the Grneta Ensemble] and for them to have performed these pieces many times and to really have taken them into their musical hearts and souls very fully, that has been very meaningful,” Cohen said. “For me, writing music for wonderful performers who enjoy playing the music is one of the key motivating elements for me as a composer. I love working with great performers and writing music that they’ll love playing.”

“Grneta Variations” is written in the character of a Jewish folk melody, with vivid lyricism and rich rhythmic diversity. The lively melodies and spirited performances from all members of the trio highlight the folk elements of the composition while also showcasing each performer’s virtuosity and individual musical personality.

Another set of variations which appears on the album is “Variously Blue,” which features a sprightly theme using the 12-bar blues progression. The piece, composed for the Verdehr Trio, combines elements of jazz with concert music while exploring the unique timbral possibilities of clarinet, violin, and piano. Cohen’s trademark lyricism shines through the expertly interwoven clarinet and violin melodies dancing above sparkling piano backdrops.

“What I love about sets of variations is I take a musical idea and then just improvise and play with it a lot,” Cohen said. “And then the variations are almost like putting a puzzle together and seeing how the different, widely varying ideas or themes can come together and make a single piece.”

The final piece on the album, “Yedid Nefesh,” is based on a simple, sweet Sephardic setting of a mystical Jewish poem. Cohen wrote the piece for his friend, violist Maria Lambros, who performs on the recording along with clarinetist Vasko Dukovski and pianist Alexandra Joan of the Grneta Ensemble. Together, the three bring to life the piece’s rich tone and vibrant colors, highlighting both the vivacious and the meditative aspects of the delicate melody.

Though each piece on “Sea of Reeds” has its own distinct character and style, Cohen’s gorgeous lyricism flows sweetly through each of them, tying together his exploration of the clarinet’s many diverse colors and dynamics.

“I’d say that every composition that I do—and I think this is true for many composers—is a new exploration, taking your particular voice and finding new ways of expressing yourself within that voice,” Cohen said. “Each piece on ‘Sea of Reeds’ is different.”

ALBUM OF THE WEEK: Ryan Streber’s “Concentric”

Posted on January 5, 2015 by maestrobeats

By Maggie Molloy

Math and music have always been intertwined. In fact, numbers pervade nearly every aspect of music—form, rhythm, meter, even intervals. But while mathematical studies such as arithmetic and algebra have often been linked with music, few composers have explored the relationship of music to geometry.

New York-based composer and audio engineer Ryan Streber is changing that.

In Streber’s new album, he experiments with a unique geometrical concept as it relates to music: concentricity. The album, titled “Concentric,” explores ideas of shape and symmetry through sound.

“The intimation through musical time of such a non-temporal idea as concentricity is something that fascinates me, as is the way in which a piece can simultaneously tell a linear narrative while still invoking a cyclical or center-oriented continuity,” Streber said. “In their own ways, all of the works on this album engage in this interplay.”

[Buy the album here!]

Each piece is inspired in some way by notions of concentricity, whether through symmetrical musical forms, experimentation with visual and spatial orientation (both in performance and in the stereo field), or the permutational patterns of pitch and rhythm structures used.

Streber studied composition with Milton Babbitt at Julliard, as evidenced in the modernist and experimental aspects of his work. However, he avoids characterizing his music as belonging to any particular aesthetic school, instead focusing on exploring his own musical voice by creating compositions which engage the listener in multiple ways.

Streber’s commitment to new and innovative music is further exemplified in his recording studio, Oktaven Audio. He is the engineer and owner of the studio, which specializes in classical, jazz, and acoustic music recording. In fact, Streber recorded, edited, mixed, and mastered “Concentric” himself at Oktaven.

He also enlisted the help of a few local friends in order to bring his musical vision to life. These include his close colleagues and collaborators, the New York-based ensembles counter)induction, Line C3 Percussion Quartet, and musicians of ACME and ICE, all of whom are featured as performers on the album.

The album begins with Streber’s single-movement String Quartet performed by counter)induction. The piece begins with snarling string melodies creating a dramatic and restless musical atmosphere. This tension eventually gives way to a slow and intimate middle section, which features a delicate violin melody flowing sweetly over a variety of quasi-improvised string backdrops. The music then returns to the drama and tension of the beginning, thus framing the middle section and creating a concentric musical form.

Concentricity takes on both a physical and visual form in “Cold Pastoral,” a much more ambient and translucent piece performed by Line C3 Percussion Quartet. The piece is performed with all four musicians oriented symmetrically around a small collection of shared instruments. Each note lingers in the air long after it is played, expanding outward from the concentric circle in a series of widening sound waves.

Streber switches gears in “Compassinges,” where he explores the unique instrumentation of electric guitar, violin, viola, cello, percussion, and voice. The piece features a short song setting of A. R. Ammons’ poem, “Love Song (I).” The vocal part is an ethereal melody drifting in and out of the musical forefront, often hiding just behind the electroacoustic accompaniment. Short melodic motifs from each instrument encircle the delicate vocal part, creating a constantly shifting musical texture.

Streber’s three-movement “Dust Shelter” explores the rich timbral and textural possibilities of flute, viola, and cello. The first and third movements are an enchanting ebb and flow of different musical textures, with angular and aggressive motifs building in intensity and then flowing back to soft and peaceful melodies. The second movement features a gorgeously expressive viola cadenza, thus creating a delicate, intimate central movement framed by two bold and dynamic movements.

Streber’s “Concentric” succeeds in exploring a wide circumference of musical ideas and forms, but at its center, the album showcases his true commitment to following his own creative voice and expanding the boundaries of his musical language.

ALBUM OF THE WEEK: Improvisations for Theremin and Piano

Posted on December 29, 2014 by maestrobeats

by Maggie Molloy

The theremin is not just for eerie sci-fi film soundtracks anymore—theremin prodigy Carolina Eyck is proving that the instrument once restricted to flying spaceships and intergalactic sound effects could just maybe have a wider range than we thought.

Eyck studied theremin from a young age with one of history’s most influential thereminists, Lydia Kavina. By the time she was 14, Eyck had developed her own technique, which she later published at age 17 in a book titled “The Art of Playing the Theremin.”

Now one of the world’s foremost theremin virtuosi, Eyck has performed and taught workshops around the world, and has collaborated with many prominent artists in both classical and contemporary musical settings.

In her latest project, she collaborated with pianist Christopher Tarnow to create an album of improvised theremin and piano pieces which push the boundaries of this electronic instrument beyond simply outer space.

The result is a new type of otherworldly sound—one that is haunting and ethereal, dark but unmistakably sincere.

The album, titled “Improvisations for Theremin and Piano,” combines primarily classical harmonies and counterpoint with the spontaneity and freedom of more avant-garde and experimental musical genres.

Though the two Leipzig-based musicians had originally considered recording an album of through-composed classical music, after discussing repertoire with their producer Allen Farmelo the three decided to create a fully improvised album.

“I was craving a more daring and collaborative approach to working together, one that would allow the studio to become a site of mutual creation rather than just documentation,” said Farmelo, who produced, recorded, mixed, and mastered the album. Farmelo is the founder and director of Butterscotch Records, the label on which the album was released.

In accordance with this egalitarian spirit, the musicians decided not to edit any of the material on the record. Instead, each of the pieces appears on the album just as it was performed in the studio.

“On this record what you hear is exactly what was played, and in my opinion the absence of editing lends these performances an organic vulnerability that is not always heard from meticulous virtuosos,” Farmelo said. “With vulnerability comes depth as we sense something slightly uncertain moving out on the horizon beyond mastery. I wouldn’t trade that depth for any amount of perceived competency, and I consider it one of this record’s most potent qualities.”

In order to create a sense of focus for each of the pieces, Farmelo wrote short phrases on dozens of sheets of paper and gave them to Eyck and Tarnow. Each phrase provided a general image or free-associative idea from which the musicians then created an improvised piece. The eight pieces which made it onto the album get their titles from the phrases that inspired each of them.

For instance, “Earth and Sky” features Tarnow performing as the earth and Eyck as the sky. Her theremin whispers shrilly above Tarnow’s rumbling and echoing bass chords, creating an austere but entrancing musical texture.

The musicians switch to a fuller sound for “Somber Waking Up,” which features a repeated melodic theremin motif weaving in and out of a softly pedaled piano backdrop.

“A Whale in Love” takes a more thematic approach, with the theremin’s tone as large and lethargic as a whale floating slowly through Tarnow’s intermittent harmonic waves and glistening melodic bubbles.

“Quiet Snowfall” features vivid musical imagery as well. Tarnow’s piano melodies sparkle softly above Eyck’s ambient, icy theremin backdrop, reminiscent of delicate snowflakes twinkling on a foggy winter night.

The timbre changes again for “Deep in the Earth,” in which Eyck’s theremin growls and rumbles as though it is drilling deep into the ground, the piano echoing its descent with its ominous intermittent chords.

The album ends with the unforgettable “Haunted Ballerina.” Tarnow sets the stage with jingling piano motif that repeats itself over and over like an eerie, broken music box. His haunting piano motifs dance with Eyck’s ghostly, low-pitched theremin melodies to create a lingering sense of darkness that lasts long after the final notes have been played.

With its remarkably wide range of musical timbres and textures, “Improvisations for Theremin and Piano” proves that the theremin is capable of much more than just cheesy sci-fi sound effects. It showcases the instrument as a genuinely heartfelt and expressive musical instrument, and in doing so, it pushes the theremin into truly uncharted territory.

ALBUM OF THE WEEK: Bill Seaman and John Supko’s “s_traits”

Posted on December 22, 2014 by maestrobeats

by Maggie Molloy

In a world where you are constantly being bombarded by new styles of computer music, it can be tricky to get your bearings. Electro, electronica, electroacoustic—the list goes on and on. At times the possibilities are so overwhelming that you just wish you had a computer program to sift through all the countless sounds and styles and bring you something truly innovative.

John Supko created a music program to do just that. Supko’s bearings_traits is a generative music engine which is capable of creating new music from an enormous database of audio source material. Supko designed the program in order to sift through over 110 hours of music and sounds which he and media artist Bill Seaman compiled over the past three years.

The duo’s database included field recordings, analog and digital noise, acoustic and electronic instruments, old cassettes from Supko’s juvenilia, recordings of Seaman and Supko playing the piano (both inside and out), and documentary soundtracks from the 60s and 70s. Supko’s newly developed software then selected audio samples of varying lengths from the database and combined them in different ways to create new aleatoric, multitrack compositions.

Seaman and Supko took 26 of these computer-generated “first drafts” and transformed them into an ambient, otherworldly album titled “s_traits.” One artist shaped all of the odd-numbered tracks and the other shaped all of the even-numbered tracks—but they’ll never tell who worked on which.

“On its own, bearings_traits came up with things that were totally charming and strange and wonderful, but sometimes a bit too mechanical or impassive,” Supko said. “Our approach was to keep the computer’s crazy inventiveness but to refine it in ways only a human (at least for the moment) can. So, for instance, if I heard something that had some emotional attraction for me, I would enhance the effect. If I heard a ghostly melody, I’d try to support it in the texture. If there was potential for a dramatic moment of attack or climax, I’d try to bring it out.”

Another more human element they added to the album was a text written by Seaman. The full text appears on the CD cover, and each track opens with Seaman reciting a few words from it. These text fragments were assigned randomly by bearings_traits, and function as both an introduction and a title for each of the pieces.

The fragmented texts perfectly echo the album’s ethereal and experimental tone, at times even helping to shape the listener’s perception of the distinctive musical textures. Despite the vast range of acoustic and electronic audio clips incorporated into this musical project, overall the album is very cohesive in its wistful and contemplative soundscapes.

“The computer did things we would probably never do, because it was able to search vast amounts of music very quickly, and put together many fragments in ways that would have taken us many months to try out ourselves,” Supko said. “The results are both unpredictable—since it’s impossible to know which fragments from the 110 hours of material the computer will select and spin into melodies, rhythms, and harmonic accompaniments—and yet oddly coherent.”

The result is a collection of whimsical sound waves and ethereal static which washes over the listener and immerses them in the depths of mesmerizing new acoustic and electronic timbres.

Still, the exploratory nature of the ambient melodies and ghostly static give these pieces a distinctly human quality. The skeletons of these works may have been crafted by a computer, but the melodic and harmonic polishes that bring these pieces to life could only have been created by humans.

ALBUM OF THE WEEK: DePue Brothers Band “When It’s Christmas Time”

Posted on December 15, 2014 by maestrobeats

by Maggie Molloy

Nothing says Christmas quite like family—and this week’s album celebrates both.

The DePue Brothers Band puts a bluegrass twist on classic Christmas carols in their holiday album, “When It’s Christmas Time.” In addition to performing their own arrangements of Christmas classics like “Sleigh Ride,” “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,” and “Winter Wonderland,” the album also features two original Christmas tunes.

The DePue Brothers—Wallace, Alex, Jason, and Zach—grew up in a musical family, where they played violin together from a young age. Each of them has since grown into virtuosic violinists, but they still frequently perform together, especially around the holidays. The band also features their honorary brothers, guitarist Mark Cosgrove, banjoist Mike Munford, bassist Kevin MacConnell, and drummer and vocalist Don Liuzzi.

“All four brothers, when they’re together and when the music is happening—it’s symphonic in power,” Liuzzi said.

The group’s music combines elements of bluegrass, classical, and rock to create their own unique genre-bending sound they call “grassical.” Their music combines their classical music training with a down-to-earth, grassroots music aesthetic.

Their Christmas album is no exception. The brothers bring humor, charm, and a whole lot of bluegrass to all of your favorite Christmas classics.

“This particular album definitely reflects a lot of different styles and combines it well,” Jason DePue said. “And yet this album does manage to have a decent amount of flow from song to song…you still get the sense that stylistically the band remains cohesive and intact.”

The album is off to a giddy start with Jason DePue’s instrumental arrangement of “Sleigh Ride.” The brothers put a twangy twist on the original tune, spicing up the otherwise smooth string texture with bluegrass banjo riffs and cheerful, jingling bells.

The band switches gears for their performance of the 18^th century French Christmas carol “Pat a Pan.” Liuzzi described his arrangement of the piece for four violins, banjo, guitar, and a variety of African and Middle Eastern drums as “Renaissance meets the Middle East.”

Next, the band’s jazz-influenced rendition of “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” comes to life with Liuzzi’s gleaming vocals complimented by a lush string texture and a series of solos from several of the bandmates.

The tune is followed by “Medley of Carols,” an instrumental rendition of five festive classics. With its heavily ornamented melodies and improvised elements, it almost makes you feel like you’re in the middle of a Christmas jam session at the DePue Brothers’ home.

Speaking of holiday traditions, the album also includes a song the brothers have performed for over 30 years: “Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring.” Wallace DePue plays solo violin on this simple, sweet, and sentimental version of Bach’s famous classic.

Another family tradition comes to life in the group’s performance of the title track, “When It’s Christmas Time.” The piece is Alex DePue’s arrangement of an original Christmas carol written by the brothers’ father, Wallace DePue Sr., who has written one Christmas carol each year for the last 40 years. The tune’s perfectly harmonized vocals and grooving beat are brimming with holiday nostalgia.

“There’s a real vocal tradition inside the DePue Brothers family,” Liuzzi noted. “And actually, you can hear it in their violin playing; they sing when they play.”

Later on, the band picks up the pace for “The Fat Man,” Alex DePue’s rock ‘n’ roll original which makes a musical nod to “Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town.”

They shift gears again for Alex DePue’s instrumental arrangement of “Winter Wonderland,” where Zach DePue’s solo fiddle elegantly sparkles with holiday magic. This is not your typical Christmas cover song, though—the brothers give this classic a rowdy bluegrass ending.

Next, their sentimental cover of “O Holy Night” captures the warmth and sincerity of the Christmas spirit, with Jason DePue’s solo violin melodies soaring over a soft and sweet string texture featuring harp, cello, and even horn.

“I dedicated [‘O Holy Night’] to my mother,” Liuzzi said. “She sang it every Christmas, and my mother had a voice that was heavenly. It was really beautiful—extraordinary intonation, extraordinary tone, and heartfelt. I wrote that arrangement with her in mind.”

In fact, Liuzzi’s mother passing away was a major impetus in the band’s decision to create a holiday album.

“After Don’s mother passed away, it was a good project to work on,” Jason DePue said. “During the holidays everybody has got so many different types of emotions, and I always say the best medicine for anything anytime of the year is keeping busy and keeping constructive.”

The album comes to an end with Jason DePue’s arrangement of Schubert’s timeless “Ave Maria.” The brothers’ glistening violin melodies sparkle above delicate piano arpeggios, ending the album on a gorgeous, poignant note.

“This is the only song on the CD that involves no more and no less than the DePue Brothers,” Jason DePue noted. “We thought we would close the CD with just the four of us playing this song together.”

“When It’s Christmas Time” celebrates Christmas music from across the ages and infuses it with a grooving bluegrass aesthetic. So this season when you’re yearning for some new holiday tunes, spice up your average carols with the DePue Brothers’ grassical twist on Christmas classics.

“This album defines the DePue Brothers Band and grassical, which is so many different styles coming into one expression, one musical statement,” Liuzzi said, noting that Christmas is both a joyful and thoughtful time of year. “It’s both festive and also contemplative—and boy, you get the extreme ends of that in this album.”