Worlds Translucent
Ravello, 2019
8/10
The veteran composer Leonard V. Ball, Jr. makes an impression with his first release on the Ravello label, as he uses violin, viola and piano to express human mortality versus the basic day to day domestic life.
“Night Vision” starts the listen with Timothy Lovelace’s sturdy keys holding down the setting as Michael Heald’s violin acrobatics are explored in many forms, and “The Forest (f)or The Trees” follows with Heald’s lone violin carrying all 5 parts with skilled precision and deft manipulation.
The back half of the listen offers the cinematic and sprawling “Vignettes du Jour”, where viola from Maggie Snyder complements Heald as the pair work off each other well, and “within-without” exits the listen with viola and keys in a haunting, sparse and minimal conclusion executed with flawless instrumentation..
A highly articulate and eloquent display that addresses the fears of the human condition as well as the universal joys, Worlds Translucent is a fine companion to the magnificent yet sometimes turbulent journey that is life.
Travels well with: Peter Greve- The Palace Of The Dreamking And Other Works; Steven Masi- Brahmsiana