Search - Ziporyn :: This Is Not a Clarinet

"World" Clarinet of astounding virtuosity

Jeff Abell | Chicago, IL USA | 09/15/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"If you wonder how exciting a solo clarinet album could be, this CD will come as a startling surprise. Evan Ziporyn is one of the best of the new generation of composers and musicians who might best be characterized as bi-cultural. An American who grew up in Chicago, and best known now for his work with the Bang-On-A-Can All-Stars, he has a long-standing connection with Balinese music, and directs the Gamelan Galak-Tika at MIT. His new solo CD demonstrates all of that cross-fertilization. The composer's "4 Impersonations" all derive from the music of other cultures (and Ziporyn gets pitches out of the instrument undreamed of by the standard fingering charts!). Michael Tenzer, who helped launch Gamelan Sekar Jaya in San Francisco, provides "Three Island Duos," again suggesting South Pacific musics. But most impressive is Ziporyn's own work, "Partial Truths," which pulls subtle harmonics from the clarinet, and demonstrates his extraordinary control over both the instrument and the psychology of constructing an extended solo riff. David Lang's "Press Release" is likewise fiendishly difficult to play and a gas to listen to. Even if you don't think you like the clarinet, this is an amazing CD."

Damn fine clarinetist

new music guy | NY, NY United States | 05/23/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The things that Evan Ziporyn can do with his instrument are fairly astounding. This is a guy who can play a series of insane-sounding multiphonics while humming conflicting pitches and rhythms and still make the whole thing sound pretty good. Overall, a contemporary-music virtuosity fairly unparallelled on his intrument, to the best of my knowledge.The only real problem with this disc is the music itself. It works, it's effective (often in a quasi-minimalist kind of way, often in a Blue Man Group pop kind of way), but it's not worth hearing too many times. It's still a heck-of-a-performance though, and worth owning."