From Amazon.com
Philips's collection of major works that have propelled Gavin Bryars to New Music stardom is an effective overview of his music. The longest work is his Cello Concerto, handsomely played by Julian Lloyd Webber with a big, colorful tone and sustained intensity throughout its contemplative half-hour. A comparable mood pervades the bright tintinnabulating textures of the whimsically titled
One Last Bar, Then Joe Can Sing. Similar as well, in their attractive serenity and suppressed sadness, are many of the other works here, prime among them the viola concerto in all but name,
The North Shore, a tone painting of the rugged cliffs of northeast England.
Adnan Songbook, settings of six poems by Lebanese poet Etel Adnan, are beautifully sung by soprano Valerie Anderson and delicately scored for a small ensemble. Bryars's biggest hits,
The Sinking of the Titanic and
Jesus' Blood Never Failed Me Yet, have inspired him to numerous reworkings and capsuled fragments. They're represented by
Titanic Lament, depicting a hymn tune dissolving into gray, watery textures, and two very different four-minute versions of
Jesus' Blood, both with Tom Waits. Some will find Bryars's brand of minimalism veering too closely to New Age music, but others will immerse themselves in a sound world of originality and refined beauties.
--Dan Davis
Chronique amazon.fr
Né en 1943, Gavin Bryars est considéré comme l'un des plus grands compositeurs anglais. Il a débuté sa carrière musicale comme bassiste de jazz et Philips édite ce portrait passionnant qui célèbre le 60e anniversaire du musicien. Son
Concerto pour violoncelle avec Julian Lloyd Webber,
One Last Bar pour ensemble de percussions,
The Green Ray avec le saxophoniste John Harle sont réunis dans ce disque... Toutes ces œuvres avec également la musique
The Sinking of the Titanic recouvrent des genres très divers, de la création minimaliste américaine à la musique de film mondialement célébrée. Comme Philip Glass, Michael Nyman ou Steve Reich, Gavin Bryars utilise des écritures très différentes, de la musique répétitive au jazz, pour témoigner de la richesse des musiques d'aujourd'hui. Impossible de ne pas connaître cette culture si novatrice !
--Étienne Bertoli
See all 12 tracks on this disc
