Roger Reynolds – All Known, All White
“Roger Reynolds (born 1934) studied music composition at the University of Michigan. Together with fellow classmates Robert Ashley and Gordon Mumma, he was a founding member of the ONCE Group. In the late ‘60s, Reynolds settled in Southern California to teach composition at the University of California, San Diego, where he has been based to this day. Reynolds’ works most often include text of poetic or mythological origin, electronic sound elements, and multichannel spatial explorations.”–Wikipedia
The All Known, All White CD rescues three long works from the ’60s and ’70s that were originally released an old CRI LP in 1984. Inspired by electronic music and musique concrete of the 1950s, “The Serpent-Snapping Eye” kicks off the proceedings with subtle drones that get splattered with atonal outbursts of trumpet, piano and percussion. This quite aquatic-sounding piece is somehow minimal and maximal at the same time. Written for the legendary ONCE Festival back in 1968, “Ping” establishes quite an eerie atmosphere full of super quiet ambience courtesy of piano, flute, harmonium and percussion. Eventually, the gentle feelings are rudely interrupted by a super loud noise blast, followed by an array of incredibly wheezing drones.
Closing the album, “Traces” is concerned not only with sound events, but their residue. It continues in a somewhat similar vein as “Ping,” via piano, flute, cello and electronics. Throughout the piece, a full wardrobe of hair shirts are forced upon the body of the listener: sparse droning, grating cello and high-pitched whines punctuated by piano outbursts. Somehow classy yet simultaneously fierce, this album will please fans of Karlheinz Stockhausen and Iannis Xenakis, no problem.
Label: Pogus Catalog Number: P21025-2 Format: CD Packaging: Jewel case Tracks: 3 Total Time: 65:41 Country: United States Released: 2002 More: Discogs, LA Phil, Official, Pogus, UCSD, UT San Diego
Text ©2013 Arcane Candy
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