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Volume 27 Issue 4 - February 2022

Gould's Wall -- Philip Akin's "breadcrumb trail; orchestras buying into hope; silver linings to the music theatre lockdown blues; Charlotte Siegel's watershed moments; Deep Wireless at 20; and guess who is Back in Focus. All this and more, now online for your reading pleasure.

Gould's Wall -- Philip Akin's "breadcrumb trail; orchestras buying into hope; silver linings to the music theatre lockdown blues; Charlotte Siegel's watershed moments; Deep Wireless at 20; and guess who is Back in Focus. All this and more, now online for your reading pleasure.

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instrument for the performance of the<br />

Goldberg Variations is the number of sounds<br />

that can be contrasted and combined by a<br />

single player, resulting in clear contrasts that<br />

amplify the linear complexities of Bach’s<br />

counterpoint. Where other instruments are<br />

limited by timbral similarities, the organ<br />

is capable of producing strikingly different<br />

sounds simultaneously, with one set of pipes<br />

sounding like a flute and another like an<br />

oboe, for example, creating a textural clarity<br />

that is almost impossible on any other singleplayer<br />

instrument.<br />

But while the tonal variety of the organ is<br />

an indispensable asset, its lack of acoustic<br />

attack can be a challenging factor. The harpsichord<br />

is, perhaps, the most attack-heavy<br />

keyboard instrument in history, its sound<br />

almost entirely characterized by the plucking<br />

of a string and the sound’s subsequent, rapid<br />

decay. Conversely, the organ produces relatively<br />

little attack but can sustain pitches<br />

indefinitely, requiring deft use of articulation<br />

to produce the clarity required in<br />

Bach’s music.<br />

As one of the world’s best orchestral organists,<br />

Carpenter manages both the pros and<br />

cons of the organ with an expert hand,<br />

applying his mastery of timbral variety and<br />

thoughtful articulation to bring the Goldberg<br />

Variations to life in a new and exciting way.<br />

Carpenter reinforces his status as a master<br />

of orchestral performance with his own transcription<br />

of Howard Hanson’s Symphony<br />

No.2, the “Romantic,” demonstrating both<br />

his own stunning virtuosity and the capabilities<br />

of the International Touring Organ. This<br />

powerhouse performance is both unique<br />

and remarkable, and sheds light on a work<br />

that, while less well known than its recorded<br />

counterpart, is equally satisfying and<br />

impressive.<br />

Matthew Whitfield<br />

Autour de Bach<br />

Pentaèdre<br />

ATMA ACD2 2841 (atmaclassique.com/en)<br />

! Pentaèdre<br />

is a compelling<br />

and refreshingly<br />

unique Quebecbased<br />

chamber<br />

ensemble that,<br />

since its founding<br />

in 1985, has been<br />

boldly working to<br />

expand the canon of classical music through<br />

the creation and dissemination of new work.<br />

One of the group’s missions is to introduce<br />

chamber music fans and classical listeners<br />

alike to new work that both draws inspiration<br />

from and moves beyond the body of established<br />

repertoire. Their latest release, Autour<br />

de Bach, couples transcriptions for wind<br />

quintet of J.S. Bach works with the Bachinspired<br />

Quintet No.3 by the late American<br />

composer David Maslanka and succeeds on<br />

all fronts.<br />

Bach’s music, with its weaving and intersecting<br />

lines that have the strength of purpose<br />

to stand alone but coalesce with a beautiful<br />

and logical precision, is the perfect foil for<br />

this egalitarian and cooperative ensemble<br />

that knows exactly when to put forward individual<br />

lines with a clarity of purpose and<br />

when to abdicate one’s individual agency<br />

for the overarching blend and good of the<br />

ensemble. While some of the pieces contained<br />

on this fine album will, no doubt, be familiar<br />

to listeners (Fugue in G Minor BWV565), the<br />

three-part developmental Maslanka contribution<br />

– which offers the group an opportunity<br />

to explore tempo, dynamic range and expressivity<br />

– slots neatly alongside Bach’s music,<br />

producing a congruent and compelling<br />

artistic presentation by this fine ensemble<br />

deserving of wider recognition.<br />

Andrew Scott<br />

Vivaldi – The Four Seasons; Piazzolla – The<br />

Four Seasons of Buenos Aires<br />

Nikki Chooi; Tessa Lark; Buffalo<br />

Philharmonic Orchestra; JoAnn Falletta<br />

Beau Fleuve Records 605996-998562<br />

(joannfalletta.com/discography.html)<br />

! This CD’s two<br />

works based on the<br />

“four seasons” idea<br />

is intriguing, since<br />

Astor Piazzolla’s<br />

The Four Seasons<br />

of Buenos Aires<br />

makes references<br />

to Vivaldi’s<br />

familiar The Four Seasons violin concertos.<br />

Canadian violinist and Buffalo Philharmonic<br />

concertmaster Nikki Chooi and the JoAnn<br />

Falletta-led Buffalo Philharmonic play the<br />

latter with vitality, colour and precision.<br />

For example, in the concerto La primavera<br />

Chooi brings clean intonation and articulation,<br />

the orchestra adding fine dynamics and<br />

lots of bounce. Slow movements of concertos<br />

evoke night in different ways. Outstanding is<br />

L’autunno with soft chromatically connected<br />

string chords sounding over a steady harpsichord.<br />

Given our present frightful winter, the<br />

first movement of L’ivorno seems especially<br />

effective: shivering string tremolos; raw cold<br />

of a harsh violin bow stroke; a fateful mood in<br />

the steady bass tread and relentless harmonic<br />

sequence of fifths. In the finale Chooi takes<br />

advantage of opportunities for free-tempo<br />

playing that come often in this concerto<br />

cycle – here because the solo protagonist is<br />

walking on ice!<br />

Piazzolla’s tango-based The Four Seasons of<br />

Buenos Aires (1965-70), written for a cabaret<br />

group, became a four-piece suite for violin<br />

and strings arranged by Leonid Desyatnikov<br />

in 1998. Soloist Tessa Lark has plenty of technique<br />

and temperament for rapid mood<br />

changes in each piece. Summer begins in a<br />

chugging offbeat-accented rhythm, followed<br />

by a violin solo with occasional references<br />

to Vivaldi’s work. Languid playing with<br />

What we're listening to this month:<br />

thewholenote.com/listening<br />

Brian Field - Vocal Works<br />

Brian Field<br />

A stunning array of diverse vocal<br />

music featuring post-romantic<br />

works with poetry from Pablo<br />

Neruda and E.E. Cummings,<br />

among others.<br />

Johann Sebastian Bach:<br />

Goldberg Variations<br />

Sarah Hagen<br />

“…a heartfelt performance<br />

worth adding to the collection.”<br />

- La Scena Musicale. A luxurious<br />

double-CD album, nominated for<br />

four <strong>2022</strong> Music PEI Awards.<br />

Mozart. Post Scriptum<br />

Sergei Kvitko<br />

“Explosion of creativity. This man is<br />

simply incredible. It is Mozart after<br />

Mozart” - EarRelevant. “refreshed,<br />

beautifully etched performance” –<br />

Audiophile Audition.<br />

“new cadenzas are spectacular”<br />

– Pizzicato<br />

Metamorphosen<br />

Maiburg Ensemble<br />

Their new album explores<br />

transformations, reflected in the<br />

fascinating life and art of many<br />

cultures - through classical, jazz,<br />

folk and world music.<br />

thewholenote.com <strong>February</strong> <strong>2022</strong> | 41

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