This is the first time I have come across the music of Canadian composer Omar Daniel, born in 1960, with this album titled after the excellent suite for two violins Giuoco delle coppie (Game of Couples). I am impressed. In this, Daniel demonstrates a great mastery of polyphonic writing for contemporary violins. He creates intriguing sounds and extremely rich resonances for the two instruments, handled with brilliance by Emily Kruspe and Erika Raum. A very nice discovery for those who like serious and complex music, but not obtuse.
For violin and piano, Fraises des bois (Wild Strawberries) is a suite of five playfully descriptive and characteristic pieces. The titles are just as expressive as Daniel’s scores: “Horse Game,” “Grew Into a Herder/Spinning Song,” “Cooking Song,” “Winter Song/The Mouse Goes to the Forest” and “Tip Toe, Little One.” Not only is it fun, but it is brilliantly written and performed (Erika Raum, once again excellent on violin and Lydia Wong on piano).
Follow Nine Estonian Runo-Songs for soprano and string trio. The songs in question cover a wide range of subjects, from harvest tunes to those associated with cooking (!), to children’s games as well as a lullaby. I can’t say if the melodies are original or taken from an ancestral repertoire, but they are very idiomatic. Daniel magnifies the truculence with very colored instrumental writing. The technical demands made on the soprano (impressive Xin Wang) are sometimes astonishing, but above all demanding in terms of expressiveness. A fascinating cycle that deserves to be performed as often as possible in concert.
The program ends with two rather dark and even torturous “Nocturnes” for violin and cello (Erika Raum and Thomas Wiebe). Less humour here, but the same excellence of execution and writing.
A very original, inventive, and expressive album of contemporary Canadian music. And a must have
