February 1, 2016

  • Chamber Music by Libby Larsen

     

    Libby Larsen: Circle of Friends
    Curtis Macomber, violin. Norman Fischer, cello. Jeanne Kierman, piano.
    Susanne Mentzer, mezzo-soprano. James Dunham, viola. Craig Rutenberg, piano. Deborah Dunham, bass.
    Navona Records 6014
    Total Time:  67:48
    Recording:   ****/****
    Performance: ****/****

    Circle of Friends is a collection of chamber works by American Composer, Libby Larsen.  Her music gained some awareness in the mid-1980s with works composed during her residency with the Minnesota Orchestra and works for the Minneapolis Artists Ensemble.  Her jazzy Four on the Floor was the first of her pieces this reviewer heard as a student.  Equally impressive was Larsen’s work to establish the Minnesota Composer’s Forum, which would eventually morph into the American Composer’s Forum.  The present release brings together five chamber works including a trio, a sonata, and a song cycle.

    In Larsen’s 2001 Trio for Violin, Cello, and Piano, we have an opportunity to hear her unique style shine through.  The opening “Sultry”, has a somewhat modern feel (think a warmer Bartok) with lyric lines that sometimes border on Impressionism.  This is wrapped into a look at rhythmic interest with suggestions perhaps of jazz at times (the work incorporates a fragment of Zez Confrey’s Kitten on the Keys).  The interior movement, “Still”, has a serene quality with a bird-call like tremor that flits above the often more complicated harmonic support.  The cello and violin work in these little dialogues while the piano creates block harmonies.  The final movement, “Bursts” plays with aspects of ragtime and Tin Pan Alley.  The central movement has some rather moving music with its lyrical aspects always being one of the hallmarks of Larsen’s style.

    The most moving work on this release for many will be Sifting Through the Ruins (2005).  The piece uses a variety of texts collected by Susanne Mentzer, who sings here.  They are part of the singers exploration of what might have led to the 2001 9/11 attacks and how we might find a way to express our own emotions, or respond to the tragedy.  This unfolds over a series of five movements set for viola and piano as accompanists, with the viola providing a warmer register that fits well against the voice here.

    Following this is a Viola Sonata (2001) composed for James Dunham who performs it here with Jeanne Kierman.  This three-movement work that explores the unique qualities of the viola.  The general structure follows that of a traditional sonata, but with each movement bearing a descriptive adjective to suggest the drive of the music.  Each movement explores the qualities of the instrument.  “Flow” allows for exploration of longer lines, with some jazz-like rhythmic inflections and virtuosic turns that are imitated in the accompaniment with a dialogue-like approach at times.  “Drift” is another of these dreamy modern/Impressionistic explorations that is beautiful and mesmerizing.  “Breathless” is not quite a perpetual moment movement, but does blend a bit of virtuosic rhythmic syncopation with the long lines for the soloist.  At times it is like we are hearing a concert work with Grapelli-like inflections for the viola.

    Two short works composed for the Minneapolis Artists Ensemble close off this album.  The first is a little work for cello and bass, Up, Where the Air Gets Thin (1985).  The piece is inspired by Hillary and Norgay’s climb of Mount Everest.  Over 25,000 feet apparently one cannot whistle due to the thin air.  So, here two lower string family instruments are asked to explore their upper extreme registers.  Four on the Floor makes for a fitting audience-pleasing encore of sorts.  It takes its inspiration from boogie-woogie and is performed at a very quick pace to suggest the relentless speed of American life with its jazzier influences.

    The sound here is really quite good and the performances are equally excellent.  These are folks who have worked with Larsen in the development of the pieces here and their commitment helps communicate these pieces.  There really is a bit of something for everyone here who enjoys contemporary chamber music.  The works are quite accessible and each is engaging.  Equally interesting is that study scores are available to link with the album making it an excellent teaching tool