Philip Blackburn: Ordo

Using music to create environments, composer Philip Blackburn “holds an acoustic mirror up to nature” in order to form various soundscapes in various instrumental milieu.

The ambitious two disc set has pieces ranging from duets to fairy large ensembles with conducting by Blackburn himself. Things start of in a fascinating format with Blackburn leading a handful of bowed electric guitarist teamed with Nirmala Rajasekar playing the Indian harp-like veena on a juxtaposition of background tonal effects and delicate strings on “Weft Sutra”. Soft percussive marimba from Luke Rinderknecht gently floats around a melding of woodwinds and strings on “The Sound of Going in the Tops of Mulberry Trees” and hints of Central Asia waft in the air as pianist Emanuele Arciuli and Blackburn provide some “virtual rhythmicon” on the fragrant “Lilacs and Lightning”.

Pastoral abstractions from Dimitris Kountouras’ recorder hover around drum, harpsichord and strings on the panoramic “ A Cambridge  Musick” and some restless rustling  is created by the University of Minnesota Solo Improvisers on the two part “Unearthing Suite”. A traffic jam of sorts takes place with honking  horns on “Stuck” and deep contemplations are delved into when Gunnar Owen Hirthae/cl converses with Nicholas Underhill/p on “Air: Air, Canary, New Ground”. Megapixels of musical ideas.

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