Nebraska Impromptu
New Focus, 2022
8/10
The Boston composer Marti Epstein offers us a collection of chamber works, where a handful of esteemed musicians highlight a songwriting approach that’s as expansive as her one time home state of Nebraska.
“Oil & Sugar” starts the listen with Rane Moore’s clarinet, Sarah Brady’s flute, and Gabriela Diaz’s violin interacting with warmth and mystery in the harmonic setting, and “Liquid, Fragile” continues with Mark Berger’s viola and Rafael Popper-Keizer’s cello adding much to the expressive and abstract dynamics that are often faint with a delicate beauty.
The title track occupies the middle spot, and pairs Moore’s clarinet with Donald Berman’s keys in the uniquely minimal climate where each instrument recruits its own distinct register, while “Komorebi” meshes clarinet, oboe and violin into a rare intimacy amid the slow rhythm and stirring harmonies.
The album exits on “See Even Night”, where clarinet, viola and piano interact for nearly 30 minutes as the textures flow evenly with much attention to timbre, space and structure.
Epstein has an impressive resume, and this portrait of the American Plains is yet another a high point in a catalog of work that’s been globally appreciated, as it should be.
Travels well with: Wilfrido Terrazas- The Torres Cycle; Pathos Trio- When Dark Sounds Collide