Back in the days of long playing album, many a record was made specifically to be taken in not by regular speakers, but by putting on headphones in order to hear all of the sonic nuances and pleasures. This cycle of four compositions by Edmund Campion and interpreted by the chamber group Earlplay is a throwback to those days, with the liner notes recommending bringing the music in intimate fashion and not just as background sounds.
Campion accompanies with electronics on a couple of pieces. He creates a tropical feel of percussion for Tod Brody’s flute on the playful and joyful “Mathematica” and veers around Daniel Kennedy’s marimba on the rustling “Astronomia”. “Geometria” is a solo area for the warm woody clarinet of Peter Josheff, who effortlessly leaps tall octaves at a single bound. Last is an ensemble conducted by David Milnes entitled “Musica” that has Brody, Josheff, Kennedy and pianist Patricia Plude mixing patterns, conversations and bouncy moments of klezmer to an almost Javanese pulse. All of the pieces have a light flair, making them dance around your stapes.