Light Darkness: The Guitar Music of Graham Lynch

The ethos of this CD is to enable the guitarists to explore the intermingling of dream, darkness and light. Graham Lynch has been influenced by several composers and artists of the past to create music that is subject to rapid mood changes, great fluidity of time and considerable variety. This album majors on time, characters and places, as well as some wide-ranging emotions. All the works have a strong sense of chiaroscuro that can be such a major characteristic of the guitar. It is helpful for the listener to know that Lynch displays an extremely eclectic style, ranging from tangos, and neo baroque, by way of serialism to a post-modern Romanticism. For details of the composer, see his excellent webpage, here. 

The opening work is Figures from Watteau for guitar duo, written in 2018. This charming piece takes its cue from paintings of the French artist, Jean-Antoine Watteau (1684-1721). Often recalled for his bucolic and idyllic paintings, he also produced several canvases of the Commedia dell’arte and the ballet. The first number is slow and reflects Watteau’s Pierrot Content. This magical painting shows the sad clown at peace in a garden with three companions: the lady on his right is playing the lute. Almost hidden in the dark background is a statue of the god Pan. But does the tranquility of this music hide some pain? The second Figure, The Italian Comedians, is a hurly burly of wit and the unruly. Watteau’s painting shows fifteen stock characters including Pierrot, Harlequin, Flamina, Scaramouche and Sylvia. They seem to have just given a performance. Yet even here, there is some melancholy. All is not knockabout.

The major work on this CD is Dark Sonata for guitar duo, completed in 2020 (during lockdown perhaps?). It has three movements. The opening In Shadows is will o’ the wisp, with its “mosaic” of sections, timbres, and colours. Lynch suggests that there is a Midsummer Night’s Dream quality in these pages. The second movement is dance-like and rhythmically pliable, which makes it less “dark” and more “good natured” than may be expected. There is a lyrical middle section. The finale justifies its title: Night is like entering a “dense forest” in physical reality or in the mind. It is unsettling, with some dissonance, little illumination and concluding with intensely frigid chords. The Sonata was composed for the Helsinki Guitar Duo.

The Naïvement-Rondeau (2018) for guitar trio was inspired by the music of François Couperin, the writings of Denis Diderot, a major figure during the Age of Enlightenment, and the paintings of Watteau. Lynch points out that “Naïvement” is used here in the sense of “natural” or “innocent” rather than “naïve.” The feeling here is deeper and more thoughtful than the title may indicate. Certainly, the episodes in the “rondeau” are dramatic and even disquieting.

The Frenchman Jean Cocteau was one of the outstanding polymaths of the 20th century. He was a film director, poet, novelist, painter, playwright, set designer, and actor, as well as being a leading light in the Avant-Garde movement. The present Waltz Cocteau (2018) for guitar quartet matches the author’s “characteristic spirit and temperament, demonstrating a lightness of touch, with twists and turns, together with elements of surprise and illusion.” I did feel the shadow of Poulenc falling over this enchanting work.

The Serenata Notturna for five guitars owes its inspiration to Mozart’s eponymous piece (K.239). Lynch’s was originally written in 2021for the guitar orchestra of the Avonia Institute, Finland. Here it is heard in a version for guitar quintet. It follows the Salzburg master’s order of movements, only substituting a Waltz for the Minuetto. The liner notes explain that there is a pedagogical aspect to the Serenata: there was a request from the Institute for “each movement to explore specific intervals,” allowing the young players the opportunity to have “an element of ear training.”  Certainly, Lynch does introduce a variety of intervallic interest both harmonically and melodically. The opening March is cool, sometimes lugubrious and never in anyway militaristic. The Waltz is definitely “nocturnal”, quite lovely in its delicious study of its harmonic material but balanced by a slightly more animated trio section. Excitement is the keynote of the concluding Rondo: there is a Spanish feel here – or is it Celtic? Despite the above mentioned “learning curve” there is nothing pedantic about this piece. 

Pájaros del Mar (2005) for guitar duo was originally scored for flute and cello. The present arrangement ticks all the boxes, giving a stunning evocation of the work’s subject matter. The translation of the title is “Sea Birds.” Lynch resides in Cornwall, but this music is also full of Iberian tropes. This is not birdsong, such as Messiaen may have imagined. It is mood music describing, for me, both the Atlantic and the Mediterranean seas. Sunlight and splashing waters balance introspective, more nocturnal moments. Lasting only just over five minutes, I want Pájaros del Mar to go on for ever. 

The booklet leaves a lot to be desired. Note wise it is fine, although a little more analysis could have been included for each piece. What I struggle with is the “artistic” design, which makes reading the notes a struggle. Tiny white print on a shiny black background is never easy on the eyes. Photographs of the performers are indistinct. Even the “sleeve cover” lacks inspiration.

The performances by all the artists, the recording and the music are all superlative. I enjoyed every note of Graham Lynch’s beautiful new CD. It is truly an exploration of light and darkness, as well as presenting music that is evocative, immediately approachable and ultimately satisfying.

Track Listing:
Graham Lynch (b.1957)
Figures from Watteau for guitar duo: 1. Pierrot Content, 2. The Italian Comedians (2018)
Dark Sonata for guitar duo: 1: In Shadows, 2. Interlude, 3. Night (2020)
Naïvement-Rondeau for guitar trio (2018)
Waltz Cocteau for guitar quartet (2018)
Serenata Notturna for five guitars (2021)
Pájaros del Mar for guitar duo (2005)
Rody van Gemert, José Casallas, Mari Mäntylä, Petri Kumela and Antti Ignatius (guitars)
rec. 11, 18, 19 June 2021 Roihuvuori Church Helsinki, Finland
Pilfink Records JJVCD252