Composer Tod Machover is a musical innovator in terms of his compositions as well his instruments, such as the hyperpiano. But Machover never loses sight of the emotional side of music that engages the listener naturally, viscerally. The pastoral, layered beginning of winds and brass in Sparkler, performed by the talented Odense Symphony Orchestra conducted by Paul Mann, is one fine example of Machover's talents. The layered entrances of the instruments are lovely, like a fantasy, and the electronic sounds are so tastefully ...
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Composer Tod Machover is a musical innovator in terms of his compositions as well his instruments, such as the hyperpiano. But Machover never loses sight of the emotional side of music that engages the listener naturally, viscerally. The pastoral, layered beginning of winds and brass in Sparkler, performed by the talented Odense Symphony Orchestra conducted by Paul Mann, is one fine example of Machover's talents. The layered entrances of the instruments are lovely, like a fantasy, and the electronic sounds are so tastefully added that one would describe the piece as an orchestral work with electronic highlights. Though the piece descends into darker cacophony, the lyrical melodies return at the end. Interlude 1 is a brief gem that is played without much vibrato and has a stop-start quality that plays with the listener's expectations. This contrasts with the first movement of Three Hyper-Dim-Sums, "Glade," which is full of motion and engaging textures and layers in the strings. The iO Quartet seems to...
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