Niels Viggo Bentzon: Chamber Concerto, Symphonic Variations (Turnabout)
Purchased from Jerry's Records, from the Duquesne University collection
Dear Reader (all three or four of you),
As I've written previously, I'm trying to stay disciplined. Tomorrow night is David Throckmorton's 50th birthday show, and I know I'll be playing on the latter portion of the night. There's some chance I won't post tomorrow, unless I find the time in the afternoon.
So what of this music? I knew nothing of the composer. I bought this largely because it is on the Turnabout label. That, and the $3 price. But I can't buy every 20th century composer in the, even that inexpensively.
As I listen to the Chamber Concerto for eleven instruments (Op. 52), the music sounds strongly of a Stravinsky influence, even Igor in a more neo-classical mode. I knew with an opus number, it was likely to be on the conservative side. But you know what? It's nice. It's the second week of the semester, and it's kicking my butt more than a little bit. A lot of that has to do with my 8am call for classes most days. So maybe this wasn't the time to listen to sonically abrasive surrealist extended soundscapes for me. It's light, maybe even bubbly, and reminds me of music I've played in wind ensembles before.
I've looked at Bentzon's discogs.com page (the site I've been collecting most of the image I post), and the first album listed is Third Stream Music. I find so-called Third Stream to sometimes be a mixed bag, but I'd at least like to have the opportunity to hear it.
The Symphonic Variations is a bit more ponderous sounding, but the shadow of Stravinsky or Hindemith, or possibly even Shostakovich, hangs over this. Is that fair? Maybe it's just laziness on my part not to find a better description or comparison.
But as I indicated, I'm tired. Maybe I'll something more to say on my next post.
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