George Crumb - Ancient Voices Of Children/Music For A Summer Evening (Makrokosmos III) (1987 compi of LPs 1971/5)

Some more beautifully strange music from George Crumb, on a Nonesuch reissue pairing two records from the 1970s.  The first of these is Ancient Voices of Children, taking its texts from Lorca as did several other Crumb works for singers (see links below).  It's a great ear-bending example of Crumb's unusual instrumental settings, featuring  oboe, mandolin, harp, amplified piano, toy piano, and percussion, and sung by boy soprano and a soprano singing into the amplified piano for extra-weird resonance.  As this was originally an LP running only 25 minutes, it really needed to be coupled up with something else on CD, and what follows is a real treat.

Summer Evening LP cover, 1975 (orig Ancient Voices LP used 'butterfly' image at top)

Music For A Summer Evening is probably my favourite Crumb work full stop (admittedly still got a lot of his music still to discover).  It's the third volume in his Makrokosmos series, the title paying homage to Bartók's Mikrokosmos, and features two amplified pianos and two percussionists.  From its initial subtlety, the dynamic range of the work varies greatly, up to the explosive Advent section and back down again, and the variety of sounds Crumb coaxes out of the two pianos and percussion instruments is spellbinding.  There's various bells, claves, metal sheets and even brief appearances by a slide whistle and stone jug.  The most hauntingly beautiful part has to be the 11-minute finale, centred on a becalmed piano sequence around which the initially discordant accompaniment gradually falls away (and the piano notes reduce), leaving only the 'starry night' of its name.  Absolutely gorgeous stuff.

link
pw: sgtg

Previously posted at SGTG:
Voice Of The Whale/Night Of The Four Moons
Songs, Drones And Refrains Of Death/Quest