Bruce Levingston - Bruce Levingston - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

Vinyl LP pressing. 2012 from the Icelandic outfit formed by singer/guitarist Nanna Bryndís Hilmarsdóttir. Their rapid rise transpired in just one year. Nanna, who began as the acoustic act Songbird, recruited extra hands to bolster her sound for a solo show. She liked how her vocals commingled with guitarist/vocalist Ragnar InchRaggiInch Þórhallsson's, so they started writing songs together and in 2010 morphed into Of Monsters and Men. As victors of 2010's Músiktilraunir, the new group earned a slot on the influential Iceland Airwaves festival later that year, followed by Seattle's radio station KEXP posting InchLittle TalksInch from a Living Room Session filmed there, setting the telltale ripple effect in motion. Though their reach is growing broader, the group's appeal has remained distinct Their music is as fantastical as it is pretty.

Mendelssohn's Songs without Words simply defy ordinary description. Refined and nuanced, they constitute some of the composer's finest and best-known works. For nearly two hundred years, they were regarded as charming relics, select romantic gems performed in small concert halls and salons. While their subtle, ornamental qualities certainly shine brightest in more intimate settings, closer inspection reveals an unexpected depth and complexity to these miniature masterpieces. Their interpretive and technical demands are considerable, requiring sensitivity to voicing, pedaling and dynamic control. Meant to enchant rather than dazzle, they evoke myriad dreams revealing some of the composer's innermost reflections. Like private entries in a musical diary, they offer a rare glimpse into this reserved but passionate artist's thoughts.

Bruce Levingston - Still Sound [COMPACT DISCS] date 02/28/2012