El-Khoury / Nemtanu / Guerrier / Messina - Violin Horn & Clarinet Cons - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

Bj rn Schmelzer - Cecus Colors Blindess & Memorial [COMPACT DISCS] date 11/30/2010

Some years ago, Stefan Warzycki's right hand fell victim to focal dystonia, an enduring neurological disorder that impairs flexibility and coordination. After recovering from the initial shock, he reinvented himself as a left-handed pianist, rising to the challenge of making one hand do the work of two and discovering a new and unexpectedly extensive repertoire of exciting, challenging music to which he is adding by commissioning new works from contemporary composers and making his own left-hand arrangements of suitable classics.

Ian Mitchell is a leading performer on all members of the clarinet family and has made recordings with most of them. He has also led Gemini for many years, bringing the ensemble to the top of the tree especially in contemporary chamber music. This album of works for clarinet and strings arose from a prize in the 1993 Prudential Awards, which provided initial funding to record three major but neglected works, by Cyril Scott, Howard Skempton and Rebecca Clarke, together with more recent pieces by Sadie Harrison and Nicola LeFanu and jazz legend Tony Coe. This is not a clarinet feature disc however, but a program of fine works involving that instrument 'in the mix'. Added to the album as a bonus is Skempton's Gemini Dances which adds flute, piano and percussion. Gemini has a very strong following for both recordings and concerts, and since it's formation in 1974 has developed a reputation for the highest levels of musicianship and immense support for contemporary composers.