Amy Brandon is a Canadian composer based in Nova Scotia. The album Lysis is a varied portrait of her musical catalogue, made up of uncompromisingly experimental scores. The sources of inspiration behind the pieces may be extra-musical, such as the caduceus of the Greco-Roman gods or the concepts of ‘door’ and ‘message’ simultaneously present in the Hebrew word Tsiyr.
However, Brandon offers little in the way of dramatic narrative, but rather music-theoretical studies in relation to technical principles of musical practice or sound expression. Take, for example, in the case of Tsiyr, Brandon explains:
…I came up with a grid of tunings, wherein the horizontal line of11th partials are the open strings of the quartet, justly-tuned to a C fundamental. From that beginning I worked vertically down and then up to fill in the ‘imaginary fundamentals’ for these 11th partials…
Obviously, the point here is not to understand these finicky notions perfectly in order to appreciate the music. But it does give you an idea of the intellectual depth that underpins Amy Brandon’s approach.
You may have gathered that her music is demanding, very demanding indeed. But if you leave aside the academic aspect of her compositional approach, you will be fascinated to hear the original sounds, dynamics and textures that this artist knows how to invent through her writing. We also appreciate the variety of formations used in this wide-ranging portrait. We move from the cello duo (Caduceus) to the ‘concerto’ with orchestra (Simulacra), with everything in between, including two works performed by the Bozzini quartet (Lysis and Tsiyr, the latter with the Paramirabo ensemble). I’ll say it again: this is music that requires your undivided attention in order to be fully savoured, but it’s well worth the effort, so often brilliantly original is the result. I enjoyed all eight tracks, with a soft spot for Intermountainous, where Julian Bertino plays 10-string guitar to a rather ambient electronic backdrop drawn by Brandon herself. Perhaps that’s because the striking change in texture brought about by the guitar and the pleasant zenitude of the writing are good to hear after or before the more edgy avant-gardism of the other pieces.
The performers are all performing with immense technical skill and precision.
Here is an album of excellent music that doesn’t pull any punches, but which will delight the most curious and daring ears.
