Double Concerto / Harpsichord Cto / Trombone Cto

This CD contains three concerti written by Nyman in the late 1990s: his Double Concerto for Saxophone and Cello, his Concerto for Harpsichord and Orchestra, and his Concerto for Trombone and Orchestra. Of these, the outer two works are fine pieces, full of excitement, lyricism and interest; well worth repeated listening. The Harpsichord Concerto, however, is not nearly as successful a composition. The liner notes imply a certain friction between composer and the soloist he was writing for, Elizabeth Chojnacka. Phrases like "Elizabeth decreed that the true potential of the Concerto could only be fulfilled by the addition of a cadenza," "I was attempting to pursuade her to play my solo piece" and "Elizabeth subsequently ordained that the cadenza could also have a life oustide the Concerto as a concert piece." indicate to me a certain difficulty in the process of composition, perhaps even to the extent that the composer was not entirely convinced of the quality of the final product. I'm certainly not--there are good moments, particularly the final section, but overall the piece is annoyingly repetitious--and yes, I'm fully aware of the influence of minimalism on Nyman's style. The harpsichord contributes little melodically, being limited to the most part to tinny repeated chordal patterns and ostinati. My teenage daughter was driven to distraction by this, and while our tastes diverge on the Backstreet Boys, I had to agree when she said it sounded like a musicbox gone mad. In fact, Nyman's done that sort of effect before successfully, but for me this attempt is a failure.Why then do I give the CD 5 stars? The trombone concerto is a fabulous thrill ride that does Christian Lindberg, arguably the greatest living trombone soloist, proud. Nyman has cast the piece as an arguement between two antagonists, and the BBC Orchestra gives Lindberg a run for his money. Nyman's orchestrations are both imaginative and delightful. The percussion, missing entirely from the Harpsichord Concerto, has an especially rich palate--at one point the players play metal filing cabinets! Wind writing too is thrilling, and the whole is a fun romp that ducks into some very unexpected corners. Lindberg's done a great job for trombone literature, and this is one of his best contributions.The Double Concerto for Saxophone and Cello that opens the disc is also a winner. It's much more lyric overall than the trombone concerto, but almost equally fascinating. Nyman has orchestrated the piece for the most part so that the two soloists act as a single role, a sort of new super-instrument. The instrumentation puzzled me when I first heard the title and I couldn't really imagine how such a piece would work; but clearly Nyman didn't have the same difficulty. Saxophonist John Harle and cellist Julian Webber do a fine job with this lovely piece, and the Philharmonia Orchestra back them superbly.

I love Nyman, so I like the CD a lot. But this is not the place to go to see if you like his music. Less emotional and extroverted than some of his other music ( Essential Michael Nyman Band) and less gushy than The Piano.