Crossing Brooklyn Ferry
Meyer, 2025
9/10
Listen to Crossing Brooklyn Ferry
The Florida composer Paul Richards recruits many players for this contemporary classical and chamber listen that unfolds across 2 discs of sophistication.
The warm spirit of “Entanglements” opens with the precise keys from Evan Mitchell and Kristen Stoner’s cozy flute that mesmerize us for 9+ minutes, and “Ouroboros” follows with a cinematic quality that weaves in and out of unpredictable chamber ideas thanks to Stoner’s flute, Dale Fedele’s clarinet, Janna Lower’s violin, Steven Thomas’ cello, Hsiang Tu’s piano and Kenneth Broadway’s percussion.
In the middle, “Syncretisms” enlists Silviu Ciulei’s animated and meticulous guitar for 5 movements of diverse songwriting, while the title track exits with Christopher Pfund’s tenor and Jasmin Arakawa’s piano interacting with much beauty and grace via the powerful and expressive songwriting.
Even though these selections are uniquely different, they all possess cyclic patterns in time, themes of memory and expectation and nods to fresh contexts for the presentation of similar materials. The title track is a direct reference to Walt Whitman, and the esteemed players emit much intrigue in solo settings, classical bouts and post-minimalism.
Travels well with: Sean Hickey/Vladimir Rumyantsev- Sapiens: A Brief History Of Humankind; Gerald Cohen- Steal A Pencil For Me