| Avant-Garde | Contemporary Classical || Experimental |
Owls, Windmachines, Gravedigging and Ritual Magick, Zorn’s strange and mystical monodrama for mezzo soprano and ten instruments is presented here in a beautiful new studio recording. Composed for the Bayreuth Opera Festival in 1998, the Rituals premiere was a bit of a scandal, with the audience split down the middle…half outraged detractors, stomping out, whistling and jeering and half cheering supporters. Performed here by a stellar group of Zorn regulars and some very special guests, Rituals is opera at its virtuosic and intimate best. Five movements of magic and alchemy from the crucible of an uncompromising and unpredictable musical maverick.
This album is a total YES, from beginning to end. The music, full of druidism and wizardry, is another of Zorn's classical compositions exploring the magic of sound. This one is less dark and frightening than Magick, yet it goes way further on the path; having ten instruments and opera singers makes Rituals a completely new statement in Zorn's catalogue. The "rituals" are five short pieces, from 7 to 4 minutes. They are little melodic, since they will is to deep-explore the magic connection between each instrument's sound (instead of simply "connecting" them). Yet, the compositions here are really stunning. In a certain way, if Magick was black magic, Rituals is druid's alchemy!
Catalog: TZ 8011 (Tzadik)
On Last.fm
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