Stebbins / Riot Ensemble - Chest of Toys - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

The thirty-two polyphonic madrigals by Michelangelo Rossi, which are preserved only in manuscript in a score and a set of partbooks, have only recently become known. These pieces are unusual in a number of ways on the one hand, for music from the second quarter of the seventeenth century, they seem InchconservativeInch, composed in five parts with two tenor voices instead of two sopranos. On the other hand, they appear to be avant-garde in their vertiginous harmony (chromaticism and modulations), which lead them, in spite of the traditional counterpoint, far beyond the borders of harmonic tonality. And they are strikingly InchvieltönigInch, as this was especially cultivated in Rome of those years. The term InchvieltönigInch can perhaps be translated as InchmultitonalInch in the literal sense of using many pitches and refers to a conscious use of more than twelve notated pitches per octave. This recording tries to reproduce the intimate setting in which such madrigals were sung in their time, with the singers sitting around a big table, studying, discussing and singing. Thus the term madrigali al tavolino that was chosen to title the album. A crucial aspect of this project is the use of an arciorgano, which has 36 pitches per octave (instead on the usual 12) and provides the background to the performance of these highly sophisticated vocal pieces. The specialist Johannes Keller leads the Ensemble Domus Artis, a group especially created for the study and interpretation of madrigals intended originally to be performed in tavolino conditions.

In Mr Bongo's opinion, 'Imprevisto' is one of the most unmistakable Brazilian jazz records ever made. Dramatic intro and hypnotic piano line, decorated with panned percussion before the hats come in. Then the upright bass. A true classic.Bossa Três formed in 1961 in Rio. They spent most of their early years touring jazz clubs in the USA, before the original line up and their pianist (and perhaps most well-known band member) Luis Carlos Vinhas, returned to Brazil. This is the final track on their Em Forma! LP from 1965, released on Forma. The original pressing of this Brazil 45 was the first time 'Imprevisto' had been released on a 7Inch.We know very little about Ana Rosely. She released four 7Inch 2-track records between 1975 and 1984, the latter featuring the brilliant 'Skim Dum Dum Dum'. The original version was released by RGE Discos in 1984, which came as a surprise to us given the sound. It is very difficult to find an original copy in good condition and they are, as ever, increasing in price.Remastered with refreshed artwork.

Riot Ensemble's fourth disc on Coviello Contemporary sees them return to Deutschlandfunk with their soprano Sarah Dacey for a recording of chamber music that spans from the giant architectural spaces of Alex Groves Three Forms to Enno Poppe's wild and virtuosic Trauben. Constantly combining and recombining into different subsets of the group (Soprano, Violin, Viola, Cello and Piano) the musicians showcase the warmth, precision and searing expressivity that have had them named Inchthe supergroup of new music soloistsInch in the UK, and carried them to festivals ranging from MaerzMusik to Wien Modern to Dark Music Days.