Michael Gordon: Sonatra

After a disc of works by Steve Reich and another of music by Tristan Perich, Vicky Chow now presents Sonatra by Michael Gordon, one of the founders of the Bang On A Can ensemble, of which she is the pianist. It is, she says, the most difficult piece she has ever worked on. Fifteen minutes of arpeggios that go up and down ceaselessly, until they turn into glissandi. It’s amazing, especially in the second version, played in pure intonation, it’s positively vertiginous! It sounds like a bionic Conlon Nancarrow, and one dreams of witnessing it live.