Description
Title: Autumn Winds
Artist: RoadfeldtMossDutillyBashoUpton
Label: Ravello
Product Type: COMPACT DISCS
UPC: 300844059593
Genre: Classical
Release Date: 2020-02-14
Number of Discs: 1
New from Ravello Records comes AUTUMN WINDS, a collection of chamber music composed by Kirk O”Riordan. The music, which features pianist and PARMA recording artist Holly Roadfeldt along with soprano Ann Moss and Peter Dutilly playing viola, is as challenging as it is alluring; O”Riordan takes listeners to the outskirts of tonality in order to elucidate questions of beauty, existence, and mortality. The first piece, Four Beautiful Songs, explores competing notions of attraction. It is the only piece featuring all three performers. A brazen, dissonant cluster of tones from the piano opens the curtain on this provocative performance, with Moss”s soprano line sung above a frantic accompaniment. The piece juxtaposes the rush of infatuation with the bitterness of rejection. Next is Prayer Stones, a marked departure from the first. The viola embarks on a series of short meditations over the piano, as if gently palming a sacred stone while contemplating the ineffable cosmos. Autumn Winds comes next-a setting of 15 haikus by Japanese poet Matsuo Basho. Each movement, only minutes long, reflects upon the phrase “”autumn winds,”” each time reinterpreting it”s meaning. The collection concludes with Beautiful Nightmares, a minimalistic take on the serialism of Schoenberg that portrays the transcendent surrealism of the dream world. Lovers of early 20th century art music will no doubt take great pleasure in Kirk O”Riordan”s AUTUMN WINDS, but they are far from the only ones who will; O”Riordan”s music will fire the imagination of all those fascinated by life, language, and the distinct challenge of expressing poetry and poetic themes in song.
Tracks:
1.1 Four Beautiful Songs for piano, soprano, viola~I. Ode on “”Ode on a Grecian Urn””
1.2 Four Beautiful Songs for piano, soprano, viola~II. The Age of Beauty
1.3 Four Beautiful Songs for piano, soprano, viola~III. Even If
1.4 Four Beautiful Songs for piano, soprano, viola~IV. The Blouse
1.5 Prayer Stones for piano, viola
1.6 Autumn Winds for piano, soprano~I. All Night Autumn
1.7 Autumn Winds for piano, soprano~II. Autumn Wind Broken
1.8 Autumn Winds for piano, soprano~III. Autumn Winds
1.9 Autumn Winds for piano, soprano~IV. Autumn Wind
1.10 Autumn Winds for piano, soprano~V. Bright Red
1.11 Autumn Winds for piano, soprano~VI. Speaking Out
1.12 Autumn Winds for piano, soprano~VII. Autumn Wind
1.13 Autumn Winds for piano, soprano~VIII. Blowing Stones
1.14 Autumn Winds for piano, soprano~IX. Though Autumn Winds Blow
1.15 Autumn Winds for piano, soprano~X. With What Kind of Voice
1.16 Autumn Winds for piano, soprano~XI. Spiders
1.17 Autumn Winds for piano, soprano~XII. An Autumn Wind
1.18 Autumn Winds for piano, soprano~XIII. Shake, Oh Grave!
1.19 Autumn Winds for piano, soprano~XIV. Tremble, Oh My Grave-Mound
1.20 Autumn Winds for piano, soprano~XV. Shaking the Grave
1.21 Beautiful Nightmares for piano
Audio Sample:
All soundclips are provided by Tidal and are for illustrative purposes only. For some releases, the tracks listed may not accurately represent the tracks on the physical release.
