Chromosphere - arresting performances of Woodwind orchestral music from Shea Lolin and the Czech Philharmonic Wind Ensemble.
Conductor Shea Lolin and the Czech Philharmonic Wind Ensemble have recently recorded Chromosphere, a delightful selection of contemporary works (all first recordings) showcasing the ‘symphonic colours of the woodwind orchestra’, as the album’s subtitle describes them.
They kick off with Keiron Anderson’s (b.1955) joyous Alice in Wonderland, which beautifully exploits the variety of textures and moods of the woodwinds. There is humour in the frenetic White Rabbit, and the craziness of A Tea Party and the Lobster Quadrille, yet the dreamy opening, Alice and Her Sister is full of pastoral tenderness. Meanwhile, The Trial brings dramatic tension, before the Return to the Garden brings things to a spirited conclusion. The episodic nature of the piece means that none of the ideas stick around for long, but that adds a sense of forward momentum and story-telling pace. And right from this opening piece, the clarity of articulation and precision of the players is in evidence.
With Judith Bingham’s (b.1952) Mozart’s Pets, we are still in the realms of fantasy to some extent, albeit based on some truth, in terms of Mozart’s fondness for his pets.
Miss Bimperl, Fox Terrier has a slightly stuttering rhythm, with snappy saxes contrasting against the scurrying upper winds, whilst A London Cat uses the saxes again, this time in more sultry, feline mood. Dawn Chorus in a Viennese Bird-seller’s Shop is cleverly packed with quotes and hints at motifs, repeated like birdcall, and gradually building to a fabulous chattering chorus from the flutes, whilst The Grasshopper has fluttering keys against flighty, jumpy movement. A Canary Sings by Mozart’s Death Bed has thick, mournful textures from the bassoons and saxes, making the frantic crying song of the canary on the piccolo, left alone at the end, almost painfully moving.
Charlotte Harding (b.1989) contributes Bright Lights, a two movement work, originally written for smaller wind band forces, capturing the excitement of moving to a new city. The first movement, Luminous, is bright and atmospheric, but also full of mystery and a sense of discovery. The cor anglais makes a notable appearance, and there are flashes of colour from the flutes and piccolo amidst the glowing chordal texture, with everything building to a final flashing of lights, again led by the flutes and piccolo. Energetic, Colourful does what it says on the tin, with bright energy and sparkle throughout, and the players excel in bringing out all of the detail, with Lolin managing the rapidly shifting tempi and complex rhythms with evident command, building to an impressive climactic finish.
The programming on the disc comes into its own here too, with the frenetic energy of Bright Lights immediately subdued by the darkly atmospheric Domes from Kamran Ince (b.1960). Straight away, the falling, entwined flutes create a sense of awe and calm, occasionally disturbed by rapid interjections, the piece contrasting the ancient city skylines of Rome and Constantinople. As it develops, the ideas combine and clash more and more, with fiddling movement layered over the insistent falling lines and thick chordal textures. There is also frequent use of silence, the breaks accentuating the drama but also constantly reinforcing the calm, yet Lolin maintains the momentum, and the balance between the chordal textures and more energetic movement. The Pärt-like falling lines return at the end, picked up with tenderness by the clarinets, creating a rather beautiful, if somewhat poignant ending.
The disc concludes with Christopher Hussey’s (b.1974) Child of the Wandering Sea. Having recently been fortunate to be involved with Brighton16 in a recording of one of his choral pieces, Songs from the Temple, this work is a fascinating contrast to that work’s more transparent (but equally evocative) writing, a demonstration of Hussey’s compositional range. It is vivid and atmospheric, and in its three sections, Hussey explores marine life at increasing depths of the ocean. So Sunlight is busy and literally full of life, with trilling clarinets and a plethora of melodic material for mostly upper instruments competing for attention. The energy gradually builds, and Twilight quickens the pace, with more virtuosic demands on the players, and the precision and articulation here is as bright as ever, with Lolin clearly steering proceedings with confidence. After a wild climax, the tempo and mood subside into the darkness of Midnight, the deepest part ocean where there is no light. The weighty chords have a disturbing quality, and a final brief outburst notwithstanding, we are left in solitary darkness.
As an exceptional demonstration of the often neglected range that wind music can deliver, and with such commandingly expert performances from Lolin and the Czech Philharmonic Wind Ensemble, this has to be highly recommended.
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