I Am (review)

Deborah Thurlow's compact disc I Amis a collection of six works for electronically enhanced horn. Eric Ross on theremin and Clive Smith on electric guitar accompany Ms. Thurlow on horn. Two of the pieces are composed by Ms. Thurlow, another by Mr. Smith, and one by Mr. Ross, with the remaining work composed by Yaacov Mishori for unaltered solo horn.

Mr. Smith's Ancient Future is the first track on this disc. "Imagine a realm where, beneath their apparent differences, the horn and the electronics could exploit some of their shared qualities," writes Mr. Smith. This is effectively accomplished through electronic processing and the use of extended techniques on the guitar to create an ambient space that sweeps through the harmonic spectrum. The horn's modal style of improvisation is drenched in reverb and delay so that the long linear lines blur together to create a sustained quality that blends into the guitar texture. The theremin acts as a counterpoint, weaving in and out of the horn part but never imitating it. The overall effect is that of listening to a filter sweep through a densely harmonic texture.

Serenade, written by Mr. Ross, consists of two movements. "In the first, the instruments form a dialogue around fixed sections, comprising tonal, atonal, and serial elements, along with improvisational sections," describes the composer. The players are asked to imitate human, animal, and instrumental sounds, as well as each other. These instructions lead the listener to expect some very specific things to occur with the human and animal imitations, while the theremin seems to be full of potential that is never quite realized. The instrumentalists' imitations of one another during this movement don't quite materialize either.

The second movement adds a vocal text, parts of which are written in Esperanto, a type of universal language. The horn is electronically processed to extend its range and timbre, according to Mr. Ross. This movement opens with some imitation of melodic material between the horn and the piano then quickly breaks off into a freely atonal improvisation section. About four minutes in, the text is introduced, and seems to operate without either being affected by or affecting the other instruments. Toward the end of the work the horn briefly breaks into a swing-style linear improvisation.

What is fantastic about these first two pieces is that they were recorded live in front of an audience. You get the beauty of the enhanced and extended parameters of the electronic processing as well as the real-time flexibility, subtlety, and continuously variable parameters that analog instruments bring to improvised music. The response to unintended actions by players or electronics can lead to the possibility of unexplored ideas, which creates a very exciting atmosphere for both performer and audience.

The Chaotic World is appropriately titled. This is the last track on the CD and it juxtaposes several different styles. There are atmospheric textures, a fugue, jazz, and free improvisatory sections, atonal passages, a statement of the Dies Irae, and a three-part canon. The work is analogous to late-night channel surfing with the occasional off-air station, plus the ability to watch picture-in-picture. A variety of images change rapidly and abruptly, then eventually start over again. Within The Chaotic World there are places where worlds overlap, briefly co-existing in the same place at the same time. The horn continuing the contrapuntal material as the strings shift into a jazz vamp texture is one instance. The Dies Irae signals the introduction of the theremin, which moves into a free improvisatory section. The return of the vamping strings with the horn repeating the Dies Irae is another example of co-existing worlds. The Chaotic World leaves no room for ambiguity about the confusion that surrounds it. The episodic nature of the structure defines the chaos. However, the length and the completeness of each of the returning episodes is somewhat regular and tends...