Further proof of Julian Anderson’s masterful orchestral works – pieces as vivid and wild, as they are heavenly and serene – has come with the release of a disc of some of the composer’s most important works to date. The Crazed Moon (1999), Fantasias (2009) and The Discovery of Heaven (2011) show Anderson’s constantly evolving, but ever compelling orchestral sound-world, and their performance here by the London Philharmonic Orchestra – with whom Anderson is currently Composer in Residence – is nothing short of virtuosic!
PRESS:
‘There can be no stronger proof of Anderson’s emergence as a figure of international stature’
*****
‘There can be no stronger proof of Anderson’s emergence as a figure of international stature than these three scores, brilliantly performed by the LPO. The 45-year old London-born composer manipulates the orchestra with enviable assurance, subtlety and precision – spangled timbres radiating light, harmonies exploiting tensions on the edge of tonality, melodies made up of tantalising snatches of lyrical conversation. The five fantasies add up to a virtuoso showpiece – tingling stuff – while The Crazed Moon and The Discovery of Heaven are among the most vivid soundscapes of the modern orchestral era.’
Financial Times (Andrew Clark), 22 November 2013
‘spectacular effects, textural sleights of hand and lightning-fast changes of direction’
****
‘The Crazed Moon, first performed in 1997, represents the early Anderson… the energy and proliferation of its ideas have remained typical of his music ever since… [Fantasias] makes the biggest impression… a five-movement concerto for orchestra, full of spectacular effects, textural sleights of hand and lightning-fast changes of direction, it's Anderson's most vivid, most approachable orchestral work to date.’
The Guardian (Andrew Clements), 31 October 2013
‘infused with an extraordinary sense of wonder’
****
‘The metaphysical, transcendent element of Julian Anderson's work is clear in these pieces... The Crazed Moon is infused with an extraordinary sense of wonder… Fantasias likewise grows from a complex fanfare of trumpets into a thrilling, crammed piece, with abrupt, jarring changes of direction and emphasis…The Discovery of Heaven is more palliative, the three sections moving from the heavenly to a more earthly urban bustle of staccato horns and darting strings.’
The Independent (Andy Gill), 1 November 2013
‘blisteringly inventive’
****
****
‘….a virtuoso of orchestral style… Fantasiasis a blisteringly inventive, often convulsively driven quasi-symphony, opening with a perhaps Janacek-inspired brass fanfare movement. The Crazed Moon is gravely beautiful… recalling Ives with its offstage trumpets and mystically iridescent strings.’
The Sunday Times (Paul Driver), 17 November 2013