PSNY Recent Recordings: Part II

by Ted Gordon on May 23, 2018, 2:44 p.m.

We're continuing our celebration of recent recordings by PSNY composers this week, and that celebration begins with a landmark album for Anthony Cheung: Dystemporal, a portrait CD released on Wergo in 2016. Containing six premiere recordings of works Cheung, Dystemporal is performed by the Talea Ensemble, which Cheung co-directs alongside percussionist Alex Lipowski, and Ensemble Intercontemporain. These works represent a formative period in Cheung's career, and this new recording presents a landmark document of his unique compositional voice. They include: SynchroniCities (2012) for 8 musicians with electronics; Windswept Cypresses (2005) for flute, viola, harp, percussion; Running the (Full) Gamut (2008) for piano; Centripedalocity (2008) for 7 musicians; Enjamb, Infuse, Implode (2006) for 6 musicians; and Dystemporal (2012) for 23 musicians.

Another PSNY composer also saw a major portrait CD released in 2016: Lei Liang, whose Luminous, released on New World Records, documents five recent compositions that explore his long-standing research into traditional Asian arts and music, and their incorporation into a contemporary music aesthetic. These works, performed by musicians and ensembles including Steven Schick, Daniel Schlosberg, Aleck Karis, Third Coast Percussion, the Formosa Quartet, and the Palimpsest Ensemble, include: Verge Quartet (2013) for string quartet; Trans (2013) for solo percussion; The moon is following us (2015) for solo piano; Inkscape (2014) for percussion ensemble and piano; and Luminous (2014) contrabass solo and ensemble. Check out a performance of Luminous below.

With the Mivos Quartet, Kate Soper recorded her work 2015 work Nadja, a three-song cycle sets texts by Alfred, Lord Tennyson, Ovid, and André Breton that incorporates the composer's own voice into the quartet. Released on New Focus Recordings, Nadja is accompanied by works by Taylor Brook and Andrew Greenwald to complete Mivos's album, titled The Garden of Diverging Paths. Check out Soper and Mivos performing the work in 2015 below. 

Narrowing from large ensemble pieces to solo works, we're thrilled to feature percussionist Ian David Rosenbaum's solo album, Memory Palace, released on VisionIntoArt Records, the in-house label of Brooklyn venue National Sawdust. Memory Palace contains recordings of the eponymous 2012 work by Christopher Cerrone, as well as Timo Andres'Crashing Through Fences, which Rosenbaum originally commissioned and premiered in 2010. Check out a performance of Memory Palace at EMPAC below: 

Mario Diaz de Leon Premieres "Sacrament" with Talea Ensemble

by Ted Gordon on Feb. 16, 2017, 5:39 p.m.

New York's Talea Ensemble, co-directed by PSNY composer Anthony Cheung, will premiere a new work by fellow PSNY composer Mario Diaz de Leon, entitled Sacrament, at National Sawdust on February 17th. Commissioned by Talea, Sacrament is scored for ensemble and electronics, bringing Diaz de Leon's signature fire and intensity to a concert program that also includes premieres by Jason Eckhardt and Joshua Fineberg. Diaz de Leon and Talea have worked together before: they commissioned his 2013 work The Chapel Abyss, and performed Trembling Time II with the Cairn String Trio. Check out that performance below. 

Anthony Cheung's "Dystemporal" CD Release at National Sawdust

by Ted Gordon on Nov. 11, 2016, 10:12 a.m.

Dystemporal is the title of a new album from WERGO of six premiere recordings of works by Anthony Cheung. Performed by the Talea Ensemble (which Cheung co-directs alongside percussionist Alex Lipowski) and Ensemble Intercontemporain, these works represent a formative period in Cheung's career, and this new recording presents a landmark document of Cheung's unique compositional voice. 

On November 11th, the Talea Ensemble celebrates this album with a CD release concert at National Sawdust in Brooklyn. The program features Centripedalocity (for ensemble), one of the highlights of the album, conducted by James Baker, as well as Character Studies, Refrain from Riffing (alto sax and harp), and Roundabouts (solo piano), performed by Cheung himself. Check out Ryan Muncy's recording of Refrain from Riffing below: