Beautiful Passing: Music for Violin and Orchestra by Steven Mackey

by Anthony Marwood, David Robertson, Sydney Symphony Orchestra

Overview

Composer Steven Mackey is one of those who came to concert music from rock guitar, and he shares with others of his ilk a tendency to favor programmatic representation. However, his structures and textures are a good deal more complex than those of most of his contemporaries. Both of the works on the album deal with memory in a way (the Mnemosyne of the second work is the Greek goddess of memory). The work that gives the album its title came from a request by Mackey's dying mother: "Please tell everyone I had a beautiful passing." This work has been called a violin concerto, but that is true only in a general sense; the violin has several roles to play in the work's three sections, which depict emotions and scenes from the last part of his mother's life. The performance by violinist Anthony Marwood is quite affecting. Beautiful Passing is introductory to the longer, five-movement Mnemosyne's Pool, each movement of which also depicts a memory ("In memoriam A.H.S." is another familial work, remembering Mackey's father-in-law). Mackey's orchestration is brilliant here, and each pictorial movement is also a solution to a technical problem (sample the "Fleeing" and "Echoes" movements), nicely clarified by conductor David Robertson and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. The tonality of both works is extended, but nothing would preclude audiences of all kinds from enjoying them; the performances here were recorded live in Australia in 2015 and 2017; kudos to the Canary Classics label for not letting them get lost in the shuffle. ~ James Manheim

Product Details

Release Date:	12/09/2022
Label:	Canary Classics
UPC:	5060133300106
Rank:	137947

Tracks

1. Beautiful Passing, for violin and orchestra
2. Mnemosyne's Pool for symphonic orchestra~Variations
3. Mnemosyne's Pool for symphonic orchestra~D¿¿j¿¿ vu (Medley)
4. Mnemosyne's Pool for symphonic orchestra~Fleeting
5. Mnemosyne's Pool for symphonic orchestra~In Memoriam A.H.S.
6. Mnemosyne's Pool for symphonic orchestra~Echoes

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Anthony Marwood   Primary Artist,Violin
David Robertson   Primary Artist,Conductor
Sydney Symphony Orchestra   Primary Artist,Orchestra

Technical Credits

David Robertson   Liner Notes
Tony David Cray   Editing,Engineer,Recording Producer
Raff Wilson   Recording Producer
Bob Scott   Editing,Engineer
Daniel Shores   Post-Production Mastering
Philip Powers   Recording Producer
Dm Smith   Design,Cover Art
Steven Mackey   Composer,Liner Notes