Nimrod Borenstein: Suspended opus 69

Description

theartsdesk.com | Graham Rickson – March 2016
“Borenstein’s transparent, athletic string writing is stunningly realised in this performance from Laércio Diniz’s freie orchester Berlin. […] Borenstein’s sense of fun is infectious, the music moving effortlessly from sultry tango to breezy serenade. All is wrapped up with a waltz that’s simultaneously affecting and curiously inconsequential. As incidental music goes, it’s brilliant, and I’d recommend that the curious watch the trailer to the juggling ballet to see just how well the music fits the acrobatics. Beautifully recorded and luxuriously presented too.”

Opus Klassiek | Aart van der Wal – March 2016
“Brazilian conductor Laercio Sinhorelli Diniz is an inspired craftsman, whose past as a violinist must have proven itself beneficial during the recording of Suspended opus 69; not unlike we see in documentaries about Jaap van Zweden currently being broadcast.”

The Classical Reviewer | Bruce Reader – January 2016
“This is a terrific disc that brings some exceptionally fine and inventive string writing. They receive an excellent recording made in the Jesus-Christus-Kirche, Berlin, the venue for so many fine recordings of the past. Nicely presented with a booklet which has copious notes that take the form of an interview with the composer and various essays on the music, all contained in a slip case. Though just over forty minutes in duration this disc is packed with some wonderfully engaging music.”

MusicWeb International | Dominy Clements – January 2016
“This release is something of a luxury article, as are all Solaire releases so far. The CD comes in a box that also contains a substantial and glossy booklet with photos of the recording session, insightful essays, commentary and a fascinating interview with the composer. Sound quality for this production is of demonstration quality, with plenty of detail as well as a satisfying spaciousness and the best use of that gorgeous Jesus-Christus-Kirche acoustic.”

textura | Ron Schepper – December 2015 (Album of the Month)
“The forty-one-minute recording has lots going for it: Solaire’s in-house ensemble distinguishes Borenstein’s score with an impassioned and texturally luscious reading; the strings-only presentation and emphasis on elegantly lilting rhythms likens it to Stravinsky’s Apollon musagète and Schoenberg’s Verklärte Nacht (see, for example, “The World of Yesterday: Moderato” and “Tomorrow’s Waltz”); and Borenstein’s material often exudes a Bach-like purity.”

CD Classico | Andrea Bedetti – December 2015
“Quella di Borenstein è musica intelligente, di un’intelligenza che sfocia nella bellezza, nel fascino che non scade nel furbo, in una visione sonora che è il risultato di una razionalità timbrica tanto cara alla musica del tardo rinascimento e del primo barocco, intrisa di logica e di matematica (non per nulla il compositore israeliano è anche un abile matematico). Sia l’orchestra berlinese, sia il direttore brasiliano sono stati in grado di rendere assai bene le sfumature necessarie per esaltare al massimo le due partiture, così come la presa del suono, effettuata da Dirk Fischer, è davvero ottima, capace di soddisfare anche i palati esigenti degli audiofili.”

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Premiered at Covent Garden, part of the 2015 International Mime Festival and currently performed all across Europe, Gandini Juggling’s “4×4 Ephemeral Architectures” was conceptualised as a piece of imaginary architecture and a fusion of the worlds of juggling and ballet. Berlin-based label Solaire are now proudly presenting Nimrod Borenstein’s original score for the show, curated especially for the performance: A hauntingly beautiful work, which seemingly defies all the rules of the genre.

For Borenstein, currently one of Europe’s most in-demand composers, the task was clear: To write a ballet that would not only provide for an inspiring basis for the choreography, but which would also work as a fully-fledged composition in its own right. Almost given complete freedom by the group’s founder Sean Gandini, Borenstein admits to working “like a madman” for half a year to deliver one of his most striking pieces. Complex rhythmical layers are running on top of each other in one moment, only to give way to a thrilling tango, waltz or charleston in the next. And in some of the most arresting moments, the pulse seems to be dying down completely, resulting in a form of glacial acoustic ambient.

Conducted by renowned Brazilian conductor Laércio Diniz and performed by das freie orchester Berlin, this is the soundtrack to more than 150 sold-out shows and the first collaboration between Borenstein and the Solaire imprint of established classical producer Dirk Fischer.