Psyche – Alex Groves
Psyche asks us to get up close and personal with opera (alone, barefoot and blindfolded) for ten minutes, and the results are, to me, spine-tingling.
On the Axis Of This World – Matt Rogers
Rogers creates a powerful sense of coldness and isolation which fits his subject perfectly: sometimes the music seems to melt and flow in eerie droning, while at other times it resolves into shining dissonance, marking out a rarefied and unearthly sound world accentuated by whistles and sparks, or little riddling squeaks, like someone rubbing a wet finger on a cold window.
Encounters In The Republic of Heaven – Trevor Wishart
Sinking into your seat and closing your eyes, you are suddenly enveloped by a three-dimensional ball of sound, as if you are sitting inside a dynamic sound sculpture. As I made my way back to Kings Cross, every scrap of overheard conversation seemed like another coda to his psychedelic, shimmering, beautiful creation: Wishart’s careful fascination with, and luxurious delight in, the texture of the human voice will haunt you for days afterwards.
Click here to read my full review of all three works on Bachtrack.