Chamber Music Northwest: David Shifrin & Friends

“… a score truly inspired by a tragic event (9/11) and one that is likely to transcend it.” -- Peter G. Davis, New York Magazine

Thus did a leading critic sum up the remarkable Concerto for Clarinet (chamber orchestra version) by Ellen Taaffe Zwilich, one of America’s cutting-edge contemporary composers. And this is but one of this release’s four vibrant modern chamber works for clarinet and various chamber ensembles by major composers: music that greatly enriches the modern chamber repertoire.

Filling out the fascinating program are Aaron Copland’s brisk and brainy Sextet for Clarinet, Piano and String Quartet, Stephen Hartke’s delightfully wacky The Horse with the Lavender Eye, and Aaron Jay Kernis’ richly evocative Trio in Red. The performers – all among the finest soloists and chamber artists anywhere – are drawn from the ranks of Chamber Music Northwest and its legendary director, renowned clarinet virtuoso David Shifrin.

Composers: Copland; Hartke; Kernis; Zwilich

Artists: David Shifrin, clarinet; Fred Sherry, cello; Ani Kavafian, violin; Daniel Phillips, violin; Anne-Marie McDermott, piano; Ida Kavafian, violin; Paul Neubauer, viola; Theodore Arm, Daniel Ching, Catherine Cho, Sandy Yamomoto, Cornelia Heard, violin; John Largess, Todd Phillips, viola; Josua Gindele, cello; Edgar Meyer, double bass; Tara Helen O’Connor, flute; Allan Vogel, oboe; Julie Feves, bassoon; William Purvis, John Cox, horn; Sally Nelson Kuhns, cornet; Niel DePonte, percussion; Ransom Wilson, conductor;

Sample David Shifrin & Friends via Delos Radio:

Track Listing

Aaron Copland: Sextet for Clarinet, Piano and String Quartet
1. Allegro vivace
2. Lento
3. Finale

Stephen Hartke: The Horse with the Lavender Eye

4. Music of the Left
5. The Servant of Two Masters
6. Waltzing at the Abyss
7. Cancel My Rumba Lesson

Aaron Jay Kernis: Trio in Red

8. Orange Circle, Yellow Line
9. Red Whirl

Ellen Taaffe Zwilich: Concerto for Clarinet and Chamber Orchestra

10. I.
11. II. Elegy: September 11
12. III.
13. IV.

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