Mary Jane Leach - Celestial Fires (1993)

Mostly choral pieces from Mary Jane Leach (b. 1949 in Vermont, based in NYC since the mid-70s) that showcase her talent for layering multiple voices either live, on tape, or both.  This is apparent right from the opening track Bruckstück (1989), in which a phrase from a Bruckner symphony is transposed into a shimmering sea of voices.  Leach borrows another little bit of inspiration and takes it somewhere extraordinary again in Green Mountain Madrigal (1985) and Mountain Echoes (1987), which are both loosely based on a Monteverdi madrigal.  The close harmonies and dissonant intervals of the madrigal are stretched out, and the melodies passed around the singers, to gorgeous effect.

We also get an introduction here to Leach's work for instruments on tape.  The first of these two is Feu De Joie (1992) for bassoon solo plus six bassoons on tape.  With the melody directed by computer analysis of the harmonics produced by the layered tracks, and the whole piece's immersive droning soundworld, it's very reminiscent of the title track from David Behrman's On The Other Ocean.  Trio For Duo (1985), for flute, taped flute and voice, tries to meld the sound of the voice with the timbre of the flute as sounds are passed between them.  Following that, the closing track is another vocal piece, Ariel's Song (1987) for eight sopranos, gradually changing their parts in clockwise and counter-clockwise movement.  As with everything else here, it sounds stunningly lovely, and this collection comes with a huge recommendation from me.

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