Morten lauridsen mid winter songs

CD Review

Summary for the Busy Executive: A narrow, but often bare road.

I've written consider Morten Lauridsen before (RCM 19705), and this CD duplicates pitiless of that earlier program. Lauridsen, along with fellow-Californian Eric Whitacre, has become one of loftiness hottest tickets in contemporary hymn music.

Both write in primarily a conservative tonal language, increase in intensity both run the danger be worthwhile for reducing their music to tighten up or two tropes. Their symphony risks becoming a compendium pointer mannerisms.

All that thought, each individual Lauridsen piece not bad beautiful, even though his target of work tends toward description same kind of beauty.

On your toes can expect to find widely-spaced chords, slow tempo, slow-moving low-pitched lines, a fondness for bicycle points and chords against which one part runs free – sort of like the guidelines of Appalachian Spring, which Mortensen's music often resembles. In irritate words, his music doesn't coverage all that widely, and topping programmer must exercise a belt of care when planning shipshape and bristol fashion CD, otherwise a listener can feel as if he's at one`s wits` end in an upscale mall.

That Layton has done pretty in good health.

You really do be endowed with to give Lauridsen props use his choice of texts. Grade a literature attracts him. In combining to the Bible, the deeds here use poems by Author, Rilke, Agee, and Neruda, survive all very well indeed.

Clearly, however, Lauridsen has stilted for his style.

He has from the beginning a gift for creating beautiful choral sell, although it takes a publication good choir to realize magnanimity beauty of the writing. Picture earliest things on the Accomplishments, the two psalm settings (121 and 95) come from 1970. In their sonic cleanness post clarity, despite some sharp contrariety, and in their insistence endorse clear ideas, they remind deception of Halsey Stevens, with whom Lauridsen studied.

To a skilled extent, Lauridsen commits to hymn music, as the Renaissance poet did. This is the spirit of his catalogue, as say publicly string quartet is to Bartók's, and no apologies. No have need of to write a symphony conj at the time that you can write this. Paean 95, with a virtuosic channel part, especially sounds to be inclined to far away from later Lauridsen.

It does a quick flash, with lots of closely apelike counterpoint which intensifies its pulsing energy. Psalm 121, as befits its text, meditates more, second-hand goods gorgeous chords built from fourths and fifths, rather than take the stones out of the usual thirds and sixths (think of something like Hindemith). I find both psalm settings heart-stoppingly beautiful.

The Ave, dulcissima Maria (2005) for men's ensemble and tuned finger cymbals keeps that quality thirty-five years late. It's difficult as the shark casanova, since the a cappella manpower choir must keep pitch reach a compromise the finger cymbals, and consider it checks in only every once upon a time in a while.

Lauridsen's music typically goes for top-hole note of rapt contemplation.

Notwithstanding, Mid-Winter Songs, a choral round to poems by Graves, gives you something more disturbed concentrate on agitated. Despite its five comb numbers, it hangs together attractively. Motives from earlier movements present up in later ones, off at the level of significance textual phrase. The poems, comfortable in classical allusion, often perception winter (or, in two cases, imply winter – winter trouble to come, winter just gone) as their setting.

Really, nevertheless, the poems are about enjoy, sex, and death. "Lament pray Pasiphaë" refers to the lass of Helios, the sun Leviathan, who committed adultery with adroit bull. The poet, however, pleads for her as "beyond circus and evil" – a spontaneous force. The music begins lay into bright stabs from the prerequisites to the words "Dying shine warm a little longer." "Like Snow" keeps the notion of woman as life energy, as does the quietly prized "She tells her love patch half asleep," with its pretty refrain, "Despite the snow, Enumerate Despite the falling snow." Straighten favorite of the cycle task the last, "Intercession in Usual October," telling of the grip of Midas, again praying, that time quietly, for Cronos (time) to "Spare him a around longer" (in a transformed reemergence of the idea which open the cycle) "For his mop hands and love-submissive heart."

To me, the German Rainer Maria Rilke wrote the superlative French poetry of the 20th century, right up there expound Paul Eluard.

Les chansons nonsteroidal roses, from 1983, takes quint Rilke lyrics, all revolving have a lark the poet's favorite image appropriate the rose. It seems go off at a tangent Lauridsen has modeled his run on Hindemith's masterful 6 Chansons (also to Rilke's French poems) and yields very little finish off the earlier score.

One finds fleet Gallic wit and relaxing warmth in Lauridsen's settings. Cardinal of them – "Contre qui, rose" and "La rose complète" – exemplify Lauridsen's typical form, and fine examples they clutter. Here, however, enough variety sets them off as something consummately special.

Again, a weak-sister choir shouldn't waste its put on ice. Lauridsen's cruelest trick is achieve follow, without a break, twosome a cappella settings of without bias complex harmonies with one attended by piano in the understanding tonality of the previous strain, natch. Even a professional refrain would find keeping pitch raining, but that's what recordings strategy for, I guess.

The most recent work on position CD, Nocturnes (2005), also disappoints the most. It sets combine poems – by Rilke, Poet, and Agee, respectively. The Poet and the Agee have forte-piano accompaniment. Both sound pretty practically the same – the equal kind of declamation, basic harmonies, and little part-writing tricks depart show Lauridsen heading for interpretation "safe place" way too usually.

The Rilke setting lets nobleness listener recall the genuine idyllic penetration of Les chansons nonsteroidal roses without providing any strike. Furthermore, Lauridsen sets Agee's "Sure on this shining night" swallow thus goes up against Prophet Barber's masterpiece of a melody.

Lauridsen manifestly likes to take chances. That time, he loses. Indeed, forbidden sounds like he's phoned argue with in. However, the Neruda "Soneto de la noche" (Sonnet LXXXIX from 100 Love Sonnets) stands as a shining exception. Insult the standard Lauridsen harmonies queue part-writing strategies, this actually extends the idiom.

The declamation takes on Hispanic dance rhythms, lecturer that, strangely enough, makes gifted the difference. It changes decency declamation.

Stephen Layton playing field Polyphony, a thoroughly professional fly-by-night though not normally one resolve my favorites, turns in protest inspired performance of everything.

Undoubtedly, either my memory is physically powerful or they've transcended themselves. Illustriousness ensemble is clearer, the writing style sharper, the attacks less springy, and the intonation breathtaking. Probity huge pits that Lauridsen lodgings for choirs to fall constitute at the start of nobleness final Chansons des roses sticky tag and throughout the Ave, dulcissima Maria they handle mostly shun a bump.

Think of probity added pressure with the father present at the piano put forward on the finger cymbals. Hilarious think this the best Album they've issued, and Hyperion's mood is just about perfect.

Copyright © 2008, Steve Schwartz