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Meridian (2020 Remaster)

by Robert Scott Thompson

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Remastered: March 30, 2020

Meridian features works for reduced forces, solos and duos, composed during the period from 1989 to 1997. The selection of the works for this disc was informed by a desire to feature several instruments and contrasting compositions which exploit their unique properties and potentials.

Meridian : for solo flute - is a virtuostic expression which features microtonal passages within the overall formal design. The musical language is quasi-serial and derives from a set of distinct sonorities which underpin the evolving melodic utterance.

Nexi : for violin and viola - is concerned with the confluence of linear structure and is comprised of several short sections though is continuous in sound.

Canto (de Las Sombras) : for clarinet and computer generated tape - features the sounds of the acoustic clarinet in juxtaposition with transformed variants of them in the tape part. Numerous reasonably sophisticated techniques were used to create the prerecorded sounds.

Polychroma : for piano - is concerned with the evolving resonances of the instrument itself, as a kind of reverberation chamber. The work is based loosely on the formal design of the baroque rondeau, an early example of the rondo principle, yet is decidedly dodecaphonic in terms of pitch and sonority.

Sutras : for violin solo - is an extended work in four sections inspired by Patanjali’s philosophical tract Yoga Sutras. The materials of this work, pitches and rhythms, are created by the application of stochastic processes.

Re-mastered in 2018.

***

If you mostly know Robert Scott Thompson for his "ambient" and electroacoustic works (e.g., Frontier, Forgotten Places, The Silent Shore, Blue Day), you might be surprised to learn that he has a very impressive resume as a contemporary classical composer (he has a Ph.D. and M.A. in composition from UC San Diego, and studied with composers such as Cage, Feldman, Takemitsu, and Xenakis; he also teaches composition at Georgia State University).

This marvelous album is an excellent, excellent way to introduce yourself to to RST's "classical" side. Don't be put off by the fact that Amazon's "Editorial Reviews" states that "The style of this music is AVANT-GARDE classical." In this context, "avant-garde" doesn't mean indeterminate sounds of a John Cage, shrieking dissonances of a Penderecki, or minimalistic ramblings of a Terry Riley; it simply means "modern"; contemporary. (No retro "Neo-Tonal" music a la John Rutter, for example.)

Four of the five pieces pieces collected here (written over about ten-year period period; several works were revised) are for a solo instrumentalist (or soloist with electronics), and one is for a string duo.

The title work is for a solo flute; it's compositionaly very challenging to make music for an unaccompanied wind instrument interesting---cf. Berio's Sequenza I (Berio: Sequenzas), or Varese's Density 21.5 (Varèse: The Complete Works)---but RST accomplishes it. (With help from some very impressive performers, such as Amy Porter on flute.) The violin/viola duo is brilliantly scored, so that it almost sounds like a quartet, at times. The Canto for clarinet and tape melds the two into a seamless fabric, so that the two sources genuinely compliment each other. Thankfully, Thompson eschews virtuosic "pyrotechnics," although the music is definitely challenging for the performer.

The music is searching, probing, non-tonal, developmental---at times, even plaintive---yet never (or seldom) harsh or painful to listen to. Lovers of contemporary classical, electronic music, ambient, and others will great enjoy this album!

~ Steven H. Propp

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released May 28, 1999

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Robert Scott Thompson Atlanta, Georgia

The term musical alchemist best describes modern music composer Robert Scott Thompson. Combining his mastery of the electroacoustic, contemporary instrumental, and avant-garde genres into a swirling cohesive whole, he is an important pioneer on music's new frontier.

Read full bio and listen to sounds at:

www.aucourantrecords.com
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