I began my review of this CD with
the piano solo Gleann Dá Loch. The
title is translated ‘glen of two lochs.’ This work was originally composed in
1995 and revised the following year and was inspired by the ‘landscape of the
upper lake at Glendalough located in County Wicklow.’ It is the site of an old
monastic settlement. Rhona Clarke has found the musical dichotomy in the
landscape itself. There are steep mountains either side of a glistening lake
(or lough). It is this that has infused the music. The composer uses a complex
pianistic language, that involves chords played at extreme ends of the piano,
rapid scalar passages and massive contrast in dynamics. It is a hugely pleasing
piece of piano music that certainly achieves its aim of providing a musical
impression of this fascinating landscape.
The main event on this CD are three of Rhona Clarke’s
Piano Trios. In February 2016, I reviewed the Trio No.2 which was featured
on Dancing in Daylight: Contemporary
Piano Trios from Ireland (MÉTIER MSV28556). I considered that this was ‘a satisfying composition that balances
romance, motor rhythms and neo-classicism.’
The Trio No.2 was composed in 2001 and was revised in
2015. It is written in two short movements. The first opens with gently stated
piano chords supporting a ‘romantic’ dialogue between the cello and violin. The
mood could hardly be different in second movement. Here the inspiration is
Bartok. It is good to come across a modern piece of music that uses fugal
constructions as the basis of its musical argument. There is some respite from
this fast-moving music with nods back to the sustained opening movement.
The Piano Trio No.3 was written in in 2002 and revised
in 2015. It was commissioned as part of the 80th birthday
celebrations of the composer James Wilson (1922-2005). I just loved the smooth,
jazzy opening of this work. This is signed ‘tenderly’. The temper of the music
does change as the movement progresses, with a little more urgency, however the
relaxed mood is largely maintained. Once again, Rhona Clarke has created a
considerable contrast with the second movement, which is played ‘expectantly.’
This is a million miles away from the ‘smooth’ opening of the work. In fact,
Bartokian motor rhythms seem to prevail: or is it the ticking of clock? This is
jittery music that becomes distorted and seems to break down. Altogether a
splendid piece that balances contrast with a surprising degree of unity, bearing
in the mind the disparity of the musical material in each movement.
I always get a wee bit edgy when
a composer introduces a tape into their work: I should not have worried. Con Coro, which implies that the work is
recorded with a choir or vocal ensemble, is in this case coupled with violin
and cello. Clarke has created the ‘vocal’ tape by recording her own voice
singing extracts from the plainchant ‘Ubi Caritas’. (Where there is charity…).
Where I lose the plot with this piece is the suggestion in the liner notes that
it should be played to a blindfolded audience: this allows the individual to
concentrate on the music, apparently. It does seem a little ‘long-haired’ as my
late father would have said. Surely this dictum would apply to every piece of
music ever composed. Yes, I do close my eyes sometimes at a concert, but I also
like to watch the performance. Let the listener choose. Apart from this conceit,
I thoroughly enjoyed this imaginative and often gorgeous piece of music.
The Piano Trio No.4 ‘A Different
Game’ is a ‘different’ can of beans altogether. The most recent of her trios,
this makes use of improvisation placed into a ‘sequencing programme’ (I guess
this implies a computer programme) that generates much of the material for the
Trio. The liner notes do not say who did the improvisations in the first place.
Clarke sees this as kind if pre-compositional game. The opening movement had its genesis in a
work titled Forethought which was
used as a ‘sound installation’ at an art exhibition. This has been transformed
into an exciting, jagged sound which is balanced by minimalistic music with
echoes of jazz. I like the idea of the second movement: Clarke states that is
it ‘based on the disintegration of a waltz.’ It is exactly what she delivers.
The listener music must not expect Palm Court music: it is not Max Jaffa on an
‘off’ day. All this agitation is put on one side in the serene and beautiful
‘slow’ movement. The finale is quite simply bizarre – in a wonderful way. It is
a ‘crazed dance’ that makes use of cluster chords, heavy textures and trills.
There is even a cuckoo call embedded in here. But this is no First Cuckoo of Spring: Stravinsky’s Rite has nothing on this dance. It is
manic. The Piano Trio No.4 was written for the present ensemble.
The final track is the melancholy
‘In Umbra’ for solo cello. Rhona Clarke has deliberately placed this haunting
work last in the track-listings forming ‘a kind of contemplative epilogue.’ It
is a lovely piece which is always lyrical. It allows considerable interpretive
freedom to the cellist. The title can be translated ‘In the Shadow.’
A detailed biography of Rhona
Clarke can be found on her website;
however, a couple of pointers may be of interest. Rhona Clarke is a Dublin born
composer (1958). After study at University College, Dublin she completed her
Ph. D at Queen’s University, Belfast. As well as her compositions, Clarke
lectures in music at St Patrick College, Dublin City University. She has written in a wide variety of genres,
including chamber, orchestral, instrumental and choral. Clarke has successfully
made use of electronic music in several her scores.
The liner notes include an
appreciation of the composer and her music written by Axel Klein. Rhona Clarke
has provided the programme notes for each piece. A short bio is also included
as well as information about the Fidelio Trio.
The Fidelio Trio was formed
during 1995 and is made up of London-based Irish musicians. They play a wide
range of music from the ‘classics’ to newly-commissioned works. Their current
CD catalogue features music by Arnold Schoenberg, Erich Wolfgang Korngold,
Michael Nyman and Judith Weir.
The trio’s playing on this new CD
of music by Rhona Clarke is outstanding. Not only are they a hugely proficient ensemble,
but are willing to perform solo pieces with equal proficiency.
This CD explores six imaginative
works. Each one is approachable, despite the composer making no concessions to
the current craze for insipid minimalism (sub-Einaudi) so often in evidence in
contemporary music. She has managed to create an exciting and often challenging
personal voice that is always interesting and often quite beautiful. Although
Clarke does not explicitly use Irish folk tunes in these works, the numinous
atmosphere of the Irish landscape, music and people are never too far away.
Track Listing:
Rhona CLARKE (b.1958)
Piano Trio No.3 (2002, rev.2015)
Gleann Dá Loch, for piano solo (1995, rev.1996)
Piano Trio No.2 (2001, rev. 2015)
Con Coro, for violin, cello and tape (2011)
Piano Trio No.4 ‘A Different Game’ (2016)
In Umbra, for solo cello (2000, rev. 2016)
The Fidelio Trio: Darragh Morgan (violin), Adi Tal (cello),
Mary Dullea (piano)
Rec. Sonic Arts Research Centre, Belfast 22-24 August 2016
MÉTIER msv28561
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