Ascending Primes
Pyroclastic, 2024
8/10
The esteemed violinist and composer Modney welcomes a handful of peers to these 10 experimental and contemporary classical pieces.
“Ascender” starts the listen with Modney’s solo violin and distortion pedal for 7+ minutes of manipulated string ideas that mix classical and rock ideas, and “Lynx” follows with Modney’s quivering violin alongside Mariel Roberts’ animated cello and Sam Pluta’s curious electronics that emit much intrigue.
The back half of the listen belongs to the 4 chapters of “Fragmentation And The Single Form” and the 3 movements of “Event Horizon”. The former makes great use of Charmaine Lee’s well timed voice and electronics amid Dan Peck’s bellowing tuba and Cory Smythe’s melodic piano for a haze of avant-garde fun.
The latter is a nearly other worldly affair, where Anna Webber’s wild tenor saxophone, Nate Wooley’s soaring trumpet and Kate Gentile acrobatic drums are joined by plenty of strings and keys for the dizzying, busy, nearly chaotic finish- which is a far cry from its minimal beginnings.
A highly technical and exploratory experience, every moment here is unpredictable, exciting and worth revisiting many times for the artistic, chamber and classically inclined.
Travels well with: David Leon- Bird’s Eye; Noah Haidu- Standards II