CD ECM Records Giya Kancheli: Little Imber

2008

Nederlands Kamerkoor
Christine Rall - saxofon sopran
Elliot Riley - saxofon alto
Bruce Weinberger - saxofon tenor
Kenneth Coon - saxofon bariton
Klaas Stok - dirijor
Mamuka Gaganidze - voce
Zaza Miminoshvili - chitara
Matrix Ensemble
Rustavi Choir
Children's Choir
Nika Memanishvili - claviaturi, dirijor cor

Giya Kancheli :

- Amao Omi ( For Mixed Choir And Saxophone Quartet )
- Little Imber ( For Small Ensemble, Voice, Children's Choir And Men's Choir )

Two choral works by the great Georgian composer Giya Kancheli. “Little Imber” is a “site-specific” work, profoundly melancholic yet with a hint or irony, directly inspired by the English village of the same name, a ghost-town since it was evacuated and turned over to the US army for military manoeuvres in 1943. The piece is coupled here with “Amao Omi” (“senseless war”) whose phonetic text adds up to moving sound tapestry, underpinned by the subtle and supple playing of the Raschèr Saxophone Quartet.

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Audio, Klassik-CD des Monats

Nobody with an interest in Kancheli should miss this recording, and I believe, too, that it will appeal to and reach a rather wider audience. It seems to me that Kancheli, in music as delicately balanced as this, is treading an aesthetic tightrope, and one is therefore constantly agog, watching to see what his next move will be.
Ivan Moody, International Record Review

Kancheli makes less play here with dynamic extremes than in many earlier works, but still exploits startling juxtapositions of elements, poignant echoes of village life and its fragility in the face of powerful interests. Haunting song forms are used to considerable effect, as are the voices of the children’s choir and soloist Mamuka Gaganidze in subtly coloured orchestral settings. “Amao Omi” is unmistakably the work of the same imagination, skilfully blending chamber choir with saxophones, creating a cool yet compassionate piece.
Barry Witherden, BBC Music Magazine