Conductor Daniel Reuss has brought new life to Igor Stravinsky's late serialist compositions with a recording that captures the colour and light of the composer's most austere period. The album, featuring the Noord Nederlands Orkest and Cappella Amsterdam, presents four major works from Stravinsky's later years, when he became fascinated by serialism as a means of distilling musical thought.
The programme includes In Memoriam Dylan Thomas (1954), a setting of 'Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night' for solo tenor; Threni (1958), based on the Book of Lamentations; and the haunting Introitus (1965) and bristling Requiem Canticles (1966). Shorter pieces such as the Lord's Prayer and the two-minute Elegy for JFK complete the collection.
Reuss's precise yet vital interpretations are praised for bringing out the self-effacing purity and beauty of this complex, intellectually probing music. The Noord Nederlands Orkest delivers fearlessly crisp and clean playing, while the characterful vocals of Cappella Amsterdam are particularly noted for drawing the ear and bringing the music to life.
State-of-the-art sonics make this new recording a prime contender in a field that remains less than overcrowded, offering a wider audience access to Stravinsky's late works.
