Martino: Notturno / Quodlibets Ii / From the Other Side

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Recognized with a Pulitzer Prize in 1974 and regarded as a classic of the contemporary ensemble repertoire, Donald Martino's Notturno (1973) appeals more for its iridescent colors, delicately traced counterpoint, and fluid instrumental exchanges than for its less-obvious serial devices and intricately wrought but inaudible palindromes. Kaleidoscopic timbres, skittering gestures, and portentous pauses are familiar features of avant-garde chamber music of the 1970s, and are typical of the "night music" genre that hearkens back to Bartók. Yet Martino's swirling, shimmering sounds are not necessarily evocative of nocturnal scenes, but describe -- most artistically and effectively, if abstractly -- the churning emotions and thoughts of the composer in the moments before sleep takes hold. The three-movement flute solo Quodlibets II (1979) is beautiful in an angular, cerebral fashion, but it is easily overshadowed by the first work here and the grumpy, dyspeptic composition From the Other Side (1988). Technically, this quirky dance suite has many interesting juxtapositions of jazz and popular styles, but it meanders eclectically, seems too snide in tone to be endearing, and in its arbitrary references and loose structure do not hold together well. The New Millennium Ensemble is rich in tone, meticulously detailed, and idiomatically expressive, and flutist Rachel Rudich is polished and precise in Quodlibets II, so this CD deserves high marks for its dedicated performances, and also for Albany's fine sound quality. But even if From the Other Side is less than essential and detracts a little from the album's value, Notturno -- Martino's unalloyed masterpiece -- more than makes up for it, and keeps this disc's rating high.

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