Soprano Summit
Paul Cohen, soprano saxophone.
Lois Anderson and Allison Brewster Franzetti, piano;
Kathleen Nester, piccolo
Ravello Records 8062
Total Time:  62:05
Recording:   ****/****
Performance: ****/****

In his newest release on Ravello Paul Cohen shifts his attention to works for soprano saxophone.   for this release of rare works for the instrument.  The pieces here are a balance of late 20^th Century and more recent compositions by six different composers.

There are several single-movement works spread throughout the release.  It opens with the jazzy Feathers and Sax (2019) by Amanda Harberg in a work that was originally for flute.  The result here is a Paul Winter-like number with great energy and playfulness serving as a welcoming opening.  Another older work originally for another instrument included here is Grainger’s Arrival Platform Humlet (1906—for viola) in a new transcription for solo soprano sax.  Lessons of the Sky (1985) by Rodney Rogers follows the shorter piece.  Rogers explores motivic development and harmonic shading in a work that also features fine interaction between soloist and piano.  The album closes with a new arrangement of Carlos Franzetti’s Serenata (1948) which features explorations of Latin rhythmic material in a nice jazzy encore to close off this recital.

Three multi-movement works fill out the album.  John David Lamb’s 1988 Sonata is a three-movement piece whose first movement makes for a fine jazzy connection to the opening work.  An excited central section is bookended by more lyrical material with interesting harmonic ideas that feel almost remorseful.  A lyrical central movement provides some space for reflection in an arabesque-like style.

The second sonata here comes from Robert Sibbing.  Written in 1973, the piece moves through a variety of emotions connected to loss in the composer’s own life.  The style here is in a Neo-Romantic vein which makes this quite accessible music.  The opening movement is a bit more intense giving way to a gorgeous central movement of reflection.  A sense of joy and playfulness provides a bit of hope in the closing “Allegro Scherzando”.  On a more unusual front, the album includes a trio version of John Scott’s The Gift of Life (2021).  It is an interesting combination of piccolo and soprano/alto sax with piano.  The work’s inception is also based on a tragic loss which makes a programmatic connection to the Sibbing which precedes it.  Here the music intends to celebrate a life cut tragically short across three movements that move from introduction of materials through tragedy, a sense of loss, and then a thanksgiving of joy for life.

Those who are looking for some very accessible and engaging works for saxophone will find a great deal to revel in here.  Cohen is a master performer and that is on full display throughout all of these pieces that have a great deal of lyrical playing and smatterings of virtuosic display.  The program itself also feels quite intelligently chosen and laid out for listening through each of these unique works.  Both Anderson and Franzetti prove to be fine partners for bringing out the nuances of the music.  Sound is also quite good with a fine balance between soloist and piano imaged well in the sound picture.  Soprano Summit proves to be another excellent release showcasing Paul Cohen and introducing some fine music by lesser-known composers.

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A host of new releases are making their way to digital platforms in the coming weeks from Navona Records.  Here we are going to check in to three that explore more experimental musical styles.

First up is a recording of a new chamber opera, Rumpelstiltskin, from Boston-based composer Marti Epstein (Navona 6390).  This familiar folk tale about a little deformed man who wishes to be loved and makes a pact with a young maiden who only has to guess his name to be released from her agreement.  Epstein's work is cast across six distinct scenes.  The smaller instrumental ensemble focuses on a variety of percussion instruments, violin, cello, and saxophone which lends its own distinct sound.  The performance is from Boston's Guerilla Opera company that focuses on bringing challenging new works to audiences.  It would seem that in the case of this work some of the visual aspects would be equally interesting to connect with the intense music and often angular vocal writing.  The approach to the text and story also seeks to chance the vocal range expectations for characters which creates its own edge to the story.  Motivations for character actions also are explored more as each scene moves the story forward.  It can make for a rather intense work that runs just under an hour.

Composer Adrienne Elisha (1958-2017) is honored with a collection of her chamber music on  Anthelion (Navona 6402).  Elisha was also a noted violinist who championed contemporary music and performed in several ensembles including the Chamber Orchestra of Boston.  Two works written for that ensemble, and recorded by them here, close out this rather intense collection of pieces.  Azure (2014) is a clue to the color and timbre's Elisha explores in this work that uses glissandi as a unifying device to add to the blurred harmonies that occur.  Transcendence (2016) closes off the album with a work that takes inspiration from Arabic melodies and features some rather evocative and colorful writing as well.  The album gets its title from an intense work from 2009 for flute, violin, cello, clarinet, piano, and percussion.  Cast in two movements, the compositional approaches are interesting cerebral constructions about light transcribed into sound ("Sonic") and in "Resonance" more about delay and reverbration.  A short work for solo cello (Inner Voices) and one for an odd trio of viola, cello, and bass (Harrier) provide some examples of Elisha's earlier style in the late 1990s.  More fascinating is a 23-minute work for solo cello written for her brother, who performs it here.  It features a wide array of compositional techniques for the instrument that create a number of demands on the soloist in this intriguing work.

Fetter and Air (Navona 6400) rounds things out with this highly experimental soundscape for audio clips and voices performed by the Mendelssohn of Chorus Philadelphia with its director Dominick DiOrio who has imagined this piece.  Over 500 different audio components are combined with readings and random texts to create a fascinating collection of sounds and reflections.  The piece was originally a looping sound installation in May 2021 at The Rail Park in Philadelphia.

Each of these releases are examples of avant-garde approaches to music often using visceral writing with more atonal harmonies to craft unique new works.  These are not for the casual listener to be sure but those interested in developments of contemporary music will want to be sure and check out these releases