Holliger - Romancendres Feuerwerklein Chaconne & Partita - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

Choral music has always been a constant thread throughout the compositional development of Rhona Clarke (b. 1958). The works on this album range over a thirty-year period and demonstrate the increasing individuality of her work, though rooted in the choral tradition of Ireland and Britain. Her chamber and instrumental works can reach out in far more extreme modernist styles. From the darkness of Ave Atque Vale to the sheer breathtaking beauty of Pie Jesu or Lullay, my Liking, Clarke shows herself here to be among the most effective, inspired and communicative choral composers of today. The album contains sacred works; from her Requiem which concentrates on the message of redemption and omits the judgmental sections, to Marian Anthems and three Christmas Carols; and also secular songs of love, loss and black comedy. The Latvian State Choir is the leading professional choir in the Baltic States, and is in high demand internationally having worked recently with the Concertgebouw and London Philharmonic Orchestras (among many) and has recorded for Naxos, Harmonia Mundi, Warner and other top labels. This is the choir's debut album for Métier.

The winner of many prestigious awards for composition, Samuel Adler is also Professor emeritus at the Eastman School of Music. His Canto series was written to meet the challenge of providing concert etudes for every orchestral instrument. This program presents the complete Cantos for solo string instruments, exploring the great possibilities in each instrument from virtuoso feats to lyrical poignancy, 'moody' pensiveness to sharply observed wit and humor. The duet Close Encounters expresses ecstatic feelings of love, while the string trio Five Snapshots reflects contrasting scenes of nature. Samuel Adler's of Musique and a selection of other chamber works can be found on Naxos 8.559602. His Fifth Symphony can be heard on 8.559415.

Code Quartet / GENEOLOGY - Code Quartet is comprised of Christine Jensen on saxophones, Lex French on trumpet, Adrian Vedady on acoustic bass and Jim Doxas on drums. Citing themselves as grown out of a jazz genealogy, they came together with the equal goal of composing and improvising in a cordless quartet setting. The quartet draws on composers from Fletcher Henderson to Paul Bley, Charlie Haden, Ornette Coleman, and beyond. The compositions are inspired by visual art, poetry, the environment, politics, and social movements. JUSTIN TIME RECORDS