PHOTO
Here is my promised further examination of Psathas’ 2007 disc View From Olympus, the name of the piano and percussion concerto on it, played by Michael Houstoun (keyboard) with Pedro Carneiro (Portugal) providing virtuoso percussion. The New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, under Marc Taddei, also makes its presence known throughout the disc.
It opens with the composer’s one-movement saxophone concerto Omnifenix featuring sublime soloist and United States jazz star Joshua Redman and containing some frenetic drumming by our own Lance Philip.
Finally there is also a three-movement piano concerto Three Psalms with Houstoun as soloist.
Psathas loves loud music, so Houstoun obliges throughout, able to brilliantly confirm that the piano is also fundamentally a percussion instrument, here with notes amplified through microphone to compete with orchestra and noisy soloists in works where movements bear titles such as The Furies, Inferno, and Maenads.
Olympus ties in well with Psathas’ Greek heritage and his international success in gaining a large audience for New Zealand when he composed the fanfares and ceremonial music at the 2004 Athens Olympic Games.
The CD was originally a solo item but a DVD now paired with it is highly entertaining, with composer and musicians providing much information about the work and its performance. Some snippets: Psathas’ ultimate influence is Beethoven (and he likes Billy Joel and Elton John); he prefers his music ‘‘omniclimactic’’ rather than having lone peaks so it can transfer energy to the audience. The music thrills, the explanations are illuminating.
Verdict: Excellent triple onslaught plus a superb DVD.
- Geoff Adams