Ceremonial Mask & More

Reviews

Bernard Rands' 12 and ½ minute "Ceremonial" (1992) is a mysterious and dramatic ritual. It starts with an alternation of imposing brass chords and hazy harmonic clusters over a drum tattoo (certain passage of Varèse's Amériques comes to mind), from which a sinuous and wistful melody soon emerges (1:43), played by the bassoon in its upper register, and whose contour recalls the theme from Ravel's Bolero. The Bolero inspiration is very much in evidence, as the motto returns, each time more complex in orchestration and with a progressive crescendo, regularly interrupted by the strange harmonies, until its climactic and abrupt conclusion. John Harbison's four "Olympic Dances" (1997) are written in the vein of Stravinsky's Symphony of Wind Instruments, with whiffs of Tippett's Ritual Dances from his Opera "Midsummer Marriage". It is mostly pastoral in character. This is not one of its composer's most original and memorable compositions. In his Concerto for Four Solo Percussion & Wind Ensemble (1995), William Kraft doesn't go just for sheer unleashed power, as you might expect from such a piece. Despite occasional outbursts, the composition is mostly subdued and goes for color rather than violence. With its crystalline glockenspiel and vibraphone over hushed tremolos in the winds, the first movement is mysterious and beautiful as a dream of Chinese bells and gongs. The second movement an A-B-A' form, starting with a perky dialog of flute and bassoon soon joined by brass, reminiscent of the "Giuoco delle coppie" movement in Bartok's Concerto for orchestra. At 1:09 enters a half-military, half-Jazz-like rhythmic drumming, and two minutes later a more vehement version of the beginning music over percussion closes the movement. The third movement is original in its construction, starting with a powerful and menacing cadenza for solo timpani, followed by a series of 12 variations arranged in couples, with percussion statement and orchestral comment. In its moments of unleashed power, the movement is close to some of Husa's compositions (the percussion movements of his "Music for Prague 1968" and "Apotheosis of this Earth", for instance), but here again, Kraft's music is oftentimes texturally quite sparse and deals more with color than violence. "Couleurs Fauves" (1995) is one of Husa's most recent works for Wind Ensemble (a fine collection of almost half of his output in the genre can be found on a 2CD set from Mark Custom Records - see my review). It starts in a manner strikingly close to Kraft's Concerto, with a sinuous and sensuous melody played by oboe over drops of glockenspiel (the movement is titled "persisting bells"). In a simple formal construction often favored by Husa, that material is soon elaborated and rises to a triumphant, almost Britten-like climax, then recedes back to the introductory melody, now played by piccolo. The second movement "Ritual Dance Masks" is more violent and dramatic, much in the mood of the same second movement of "Apotheosis of this Earth" which I referred to here above, depicting the destruction of planet earth. The movement's second part (here conveniently sub-tracked) returns to the mood of the first movement, with another sinuous melody now on clarinet over drum tattoo, soon joined by piccolo flute playing quarter-tone slides. Another awe-inspiring and brassy build-up of tension and this time the movement ends at its climactic point. Husa's formal procedures may be simple and perhaps even simplistic, but they contribute to his music's great dramatic impact.

A must for any wind ensemble collection. Battisti's interpretation of these challenging pieces captures every subtle nuance, every emotion. The Husa is indeed breathtaking, one of the finest recordings of any Husa composition. This is a great collection of contemporary wind literature.