22 December 2006
By Richard Kamins
courant.com
original link
Fred: The Music of Frederic Rzewski - Cedille Records
Eighth Blackbird, formed in 1996, is a young, vibrant, sextet dedicated to new classical music of the 20th and 21st Centuries. Frederic Rzewski is a composer who has producing challenging work since the 1960s. For this recording (released late in 2005), the group plays a recent work alongside 2 older compositions. "Pocket Symphony" (2000) is a 6-part piece that really spotlights how versatile the group is. Long melodic lines interspersed with quick rhythmic shifts abound. The quiet moments of section "F" are ominous yet inch forward to a startling middle section then into quick pizzicato cello lines and, finally, an easy denouement. The energy and passion of the musicians make these works come alive. "Coming Together" (1971) utilizes the text of a letter written by Samuel Melville, a prisoner in New York state's Attica Prison who died in the 1971 riots. Rzewski places Melville's writing against melody lines that reference Aaron Copland and blues music. The members of the ensemble read the words and the repetition of certain phrases begin to give the words great emotional weight (especially as the music surges and ebbs.) "Les Moutons de Panurge", originally written for a recorder ensemble (!), builds off repeated phrases (65 notes long) and grows in intensity not unlike many of Steve Reich's works. Like many minimalistic pieces,the piece has a hypnotic feel but,if you listen closely, there's often an energetic bass line and melodic fragments that display a "country swing" feel. Eighth Blackbird also has an impressive stage presence, with theatrical flourishes that add to the music. Check them out.
